Whitesburg woman wins James Beard Foundation award
Aug. 16—WHITESBURG — It was, in part, her devotion to her hometown that led Valerie Ison Horn to the work that won her a 2023 James Beard Foundation Leadership Award.
The 58-year-old retired school teacher was honored for her work with Community Agricultural Nutritional Enterprises (CANE) Kitchen, Cowan Community Center and City of Whitesburg Farmers Market to make healthy food accessible for low-income individuals and to provide local farmers an outlet for their produce in Whitesburg.
"It's not for cooking; it's for leadership," she said of the awards established to recognize those working toward food security. "I was really, really pleased when I saw one of the earliest recipients was Michelle Obama."
The former first lady won in 2011 for launching "Let's Move!," a comprehensive initiative dedicated to solving the challenge of childhood obesity within a generation.
Horn was nominated by Laura Smith, with whom she worked for the farmers market.
"This was a group effort," Horn said. "I've done nothing by myself that warrants an award, but with a group, we've accomplished a great deal."
The goal, Horn said, is to help create connections and relationships in the community that lead to opportunities to help.
"We present those opportunities in a dignified and humane and pleasing way that gives the community a chance to engage and benefit from the offer, to learn and participate and be a part of the process."
Horn said the organizations aren't only working toward improving life and food access, but they have helped during crises.
"In 2020, we served more than 750,000 meals through a USDA program using CANE Kitchen's drive-through," she said of the program that distributed waivers in the community, allowing each child to have 14 meals per week. "That's a tremendous number."
Following flooding in the area in 2022, 100,000 meals were served at CANE Kitchen in five months; much of the funding came from private sources.
Ison grew up in on Cowan Creek, where both her parents attended school and met and just 10 minutes away from Whitesburg.
"My mom told a beautiful story about meeting in the fourth grade and she decided they were going to be together," she said. Both her parents became teachers and were active in the community.
"They were part of a community effort that made the Cowan Community Center," Horn said, noting the center offered the first area day care in the 1970s. "The center started television cable and did free lunches before the federal government did it. It also offered garbage service before the county offered it. It's because of strong leadership and those like my parents, who were a strong influence across the county."
Horn received her undergraduate degree from Eastern Kentucky University and her master's degree from Morehead State University. She studied leadership education at Spalding University in Louisville, working toward an EdD. She taught in Fletcher County Public Schools.
While feeding people is priority, Horn said she'd like to see economic development come from her efforts.
"I would like for us to make a clear investment in the resources and the people who are needed to maintain this work and this effort," she said. "We need the farmers market to become a part of our structure that is in place. The community values it and, of course, it's all tied up in poverty. I'd love it if 50% of the population weren't in poverty."
(606) 326-2661 — lward@dailyindependent.com
