Kentucky Voices 2023:
An Evening of Authors and Artists

DECEMBER 8, 2023 • Frankfort, KY • 7PM ET.

Location: Church of the Ascension, 311 Washington Street Frankfort, KY 40601

This annual event is back to an in-person gathering to highlight Kentucky's authors and artists, and to benefit the Kentucky Conservation Committee and its mission. The event is free as a member benefit for KCC members in good standing, but we also encourage members to renew their membership at this time, or invite a friend to join or donate, to help us raise funds in preparation for the 2023 legislative session.

This year’s event will feature these distinguished Kentucky authors and artists:

Governor Paul Patton "The Coal Miner Who Became Governor”

University of Kentucky Press. Paul E. Patton’s career trajectory took him from the coal mines of eastern Kentucky to the governor’s mansion in Frankfort. Born in Fallsburg, Kentucky, in a tenant house insulated with newspapers, Patton ultimately leveraged his coal connections into a political career that saw him serve as Kentucky’s governor from 1995 to 2003. This memoir reveals the decision-making process for many of his controversial decisions and policies and shows how his life exemplifies triumph through hard work, determination, and perseverance, as well as the consequences of personal mistakes.

LeTonia Jones "Black Girl at the Intersection"

Accents Publishing. LeTonia Jones, a lifelong Kentuckian, has used the alchemy of arts and activism for more than 25 years. She is a poet, social justice advocate, and educator, as well as the owner of Defense Based Advocacy Services, which provides mitigation investigation services for defendants facing the death penalty. In this debut collection of her poetry, Jones speaks from the intersection of social justice and personal heartbreak; past, present, and possible future interact and dare to hope for a better world.

Byron Crawford "The Back Page: Byron Crawford’s Kentucky Living Columns"

Butler Books. Veteran television and newspaper journalist Byron Crawford, who grew up on the family farm in Lincoln County, Kentucky, has written the back page of Kentucky Living magazine since 2011. In this new collection of his stories, Crawford shares stories about Kentucky’s rural people and places, from the poignant to the profound, gleaned from more than three decades of exploring the commonwealth and meeting its citizens.

Richard Taylor "Fathers"

Accents Publishing. A former Kentucky poet laureate, Richard Taylor is a professor of English and serves as Kenan Visiting Writer at Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky. He and his wife Lizz also own Poor Richard’s Books in Frankfort, Kentucky. His latest book, a collection of personal essays, explores the interconnections between fathers and father figures in his life and his family, from the Civil War through the present.

To learn more about the Kentucky Conservation Committee and its mission, go to kyconservation.org Note: Donations to KCC are not tax-deductible due to our effective environmental lobbying efforts.