Caneyville Preserving Classes

Caneyville Graded and High School

Caneyville, Kentucky

What a fantastic restoration project! This building was built in 1928. I fell in love immediately. I loved the idea of restoring a spectacular old building. Work on the building started in 2014. Brick by brick, piece by piece this community is restoring each room. Many of the rooms are being finished by donations. Generally a room is funded by a single donor and dedicated to that donor. I am a curious person by nature; yes I do know curiosity kills the cat, on our first visit to the school I explored some of the rooms. I loved the classroom with one of the original cheerleading outfits on display. Before our class started, I met one of the ladies that helped in organizing the project. She is so enthusiastic about it and you can tell she loves this building and has wonderful memories from attending school here. She gushed and gushed about the ideas they have to finish each room. She told me how they utilize the work-release program from the jail to get the man power to complete the projects. I met a deputy from the county jail along with several of the inmates. He was so proud of what the inmates are helping this little community to complete. When we entered the little room to teach our preserving classes he explained to me that the floor had X amount of concrete, the cabinets were original to the old "Home Ec" room and his face glowed with pride at what he had been able to give back to the community. 

Had I not received this internship, I may never have gotten to see this beautiful place. I know that I would not have gotten to assist Natalie in the preserving classes which made me realize just how much I missed interacting with people that attend the University of Kentucky Cooperative Extension classes. Our last class was June 30, 2016.  By the end of the class, they were asking me if I would get to come back for more classes this summer, when my internship would be complete and if I had enjoyed my experience thus far.  A sad sigh was heard from a few but they wished me well. We gave a survey to see which classes they would like to be offered in the area. Many had wonderful ideas. Extension allows people to socialize as well as learn. It's not only good for the mind but it is good for the heart!