Fall is in the air

Kentucky offers a bounty of award winning venues

I WAS RECENTLY THINKING OF the amazing stories told by Paul Harvey. Maybe you remember him from his daily syndicated radio program The Rest of the Story. One of his most famous soliloquies was So God Made a Farmer, given as a speech at the 1978 Future Farmers of America convention, then published in 1986. In the presentation, Harvey discusses the strength, the commitment, the faith and the legacy of a farmer. 

This time of year, when the crops are ready and the fields become those beautiful autumn hues, I often think of the sacrifices made throughout the year by my family of farmers as well as farmers across the state who are served by Kentucky’s electric cooperatives. 

Crystal Thompson, a consumer-member of Farmers RECC, shares the photo above of Otto Thompson doing the fall harvest on the family farm in Cub Run. 

This is my favorite time of year, when mornings are crisp and evenings are filled with young people playing football or soccer. The taste of apple cider and pumpkin flavored foods makes me smile. There’s not a better evening than going on a hayride with friends and then stopping to huddle around a bonfire. This is what I think about when the calendar moves past Labor Day. 

My favorite memories of my children growing up are of fall activities, when my wife, Kim, and I would take them to corn mazes, go on long walks along the lake and feed the ducks. There is nothing better than spending a fall afternoon with two curly-haired girls. 

One of the winners of this year’s Best in Kentucky awards is Hinton’s Orchard & Farm Market in Elizabethtown and Hodgenville, served by Nolin RECC. Every fall they turn their farm into a playground for lovers of this time of year. The smell of mums, the corn maze and the children’s play area make this the place for families to visit. 

In this month’s issue of Kentucky Living, we highlight the winners of the Best in Kentucky readers’ vote. We are so lucky to have amazing places to visit and enjoy such as Mammoth Cave, Land Between The Lakes and Red River Gorge. I hope this fall you will consider visiting these wonderful venues.