This upcoming Friday is a big day for our family. My Papaw, Dr. Mack Whiteker, will be inducted into the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture Hall of Fame! Twenty people will be inducted, fifteen posthumous and five living recipients. This is the first year for the Hall of Fame and my family and I are humbled and excited!
I found out about PaPaw's induction at a College of Ag & HES Alumni Board meeting. My heart burst with pride when they called out Papaw's name. After leaving the meeting, I called my Mom with the exciting news and ran home to tell Teak. Teak was excited for Papaw as well and when I told her the ceremony would include a dinner downtown at the Hyatt, her wheels were turning on what she should wear!
Looking back on my Papaw's career makes me unbelievably proud. After serving in the Korean War, Papaw used his GI Bill money to complete his Master's and after completion, he worked for the University for 2 years in the Cooperative Extension swine unit. After working two years, he continued his education and completed his Ph.D. Both his Master's thesis and dissertation sit on my desk and were a huge source of inspiration to me as I wrote my creative project!
Soon after, Teak and Papaw along with my aunt and mom headed to Iowa. Papaw got a job with the Iowa State Cooperative Extension Swine Department. They spent 6 years in Iowa, made wonderful friends, and ended up leaving with three little girls. My Aunt T was born in Iowa and Papaw was more than outnumbered! According to Teak, this is where Papaw made a name for himself. While in Iowa, Papaw became involved with the Pork Producers Association and worked to help pig producers. While meeting with producers, food was often involved. It was through these meetings that PaPaw taught others about ground pork burgers which is just like a hamburger, but with pork. If you have never tried one, I highly recommend it. I actually prefer a pork burger over a hamburger any day. I can't eat one without thinking of him.
While they enjoyed their time in Iowa and made good friends, an opportunity arose at the University of Kentucky. He and Teak packed up the girls and headed back home to the bluegrass state. To the best of Teak's memory, the job was for the Extension service as a Swine Specialist. In a nutshell, a specialist serves county extension agents and provides research-based information, program opportunities, and answers questions from citizens and agents. From the stories I have heard, my Papaw was one hell of an employee for Extension. He was all about the farmers and producers, didn't act high and mighty, laughed easily, and could relate to any audience he was in front of.
Somewhere along the road, PaPaw got involved with UK Athletics. He started cooking meals for Joe B. Hall's basketball team, Papaw would gather a group of guys and they would cook pork chops for the team. As an appetizer, they would grill pork sausages and make sandwhich out of a sausage patty, tomato, and onion on a roll. To this day, we have this meal and it is in remembrance of Papaw.
It was through his cooking for the basketball teams that he became good friends with Bill Keightley. I can remember coming to Teak and Papaw's house and he would have basketball shirts for us. Keightley would give Papaw t-shirts for us grandkids and they would swallow us whole but it was a treat to get them. Papaw raised us young to become UK fans!
In 1982, Papaw was promoted to Assistant Director of Cooperative Extension. In this administration position, there was quite a bit of travel. But it was here that I think Papaw thrived. He enjoyed speaking to groups, being with others, and hamming it up with everyone. He retired when it was no longer fun for him and the traveling was too much, which was 1987.
He passed away in 2006, well before I realized I have a passion for Extension. I so wish he was here so I could ask him what he thinks of Extension's future. I wish I could have his wisdom to help me do my job better and know what to let roll off my back. I don't want to ride off of his coattails, but I do hope people get to know me first then hear that Papaw is my Papaw and see similarities between the two of us. Nothing thrills me more than when an agent comes up to me with a story about Papaw. Some stories make me blush because my Papaw was known to cuss a little, tell crude jokes, and enjoy a drink or two of Bourbon but all within moderation! However, most of the agents tell me what an influence he was to them and their county. They describe how friendly he was and how much they liked him coming to their office. Again, my heart bursts with pride knowing these things about my Papaw.
Friday night's induction ceremony is beyond meaningful to my family and I. All of us will be there (Mom will be in spirit) celebrating his lifelong work. He loved pigs but more importantly he loved people. He knew the value of hard work, the power of laughter, and the importance of being real with others. I pray that I am half of the worker that he was. Thank you Papaw for your rich legacy in the College of Agriculture and Cooperative Extension Service. Oh what a night Friday night will be!
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