OFFERING THE LATEST IN ADVANCED HEART CARE.

THAT’S WHAT GETS OUR BLOOD PUMPING. There’s no better place for your heart than Baptist Health Paducah. Here, you have easy access to a team of cardiologists and structural heart specialists who offer comprehensive cardiac services, from advanced diagnostic care and surgery to follow-up care. And we are the only hospital in the area to offer the transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedure, a minimally invasive surgical valve replacement procedure. Devoting our lives to taking better care of your heart; that’s cardiac care centered on you. Visit BaptistHealth.com/PaducahHeart to learn more and take a heart risk assessment.

BaptistHealth.com executive editor/ PUBLISHER

Darlene M. Mazzone associate EDITOR / editorial PHOTOGRAPHY

J.T. Crawford art DIRECTOR

Scott McWilliams associate art DIRECTOR Allison Wicker marketing MANAGER

Rachel Curry

PHOTOGRAPHY

J.T. Crawford on the COVER 100 Block of Broadway

Paducah Life is published six times a year for the Paducah area. All contents copyright 2020 by Mazzone Communications. Reproduction or use of the contents without written permission is prohibited. Comments written in this magazine are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the ownership or management of Paducah Life Subscription rate is $29.95 for six issues. Subscription inquiries, all remittances and all advertising inquiries should be sent to Paducah Life, 1238 High Street, Paducah, KY 42001. Phone: (270) 442-3338. This magazine accepts no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, photography or artwork. All submissions may be edited for length, clarity and style.

As OWEN CLEANERS turns 100 in 2020, we want to thank our many customers for their longstanding support. During our first century, we have adapted to many changes in fashion trends, fabrics and social lifestyles. But what hasn’t changed is our commitment to friendly customer service while offering state-of-the-art dry cleaning and wet cleaning solutions that are also friendly to the environment.

Owen Cleaners offers:

• Sanitone® Fine Drycleaning

• Platinum Shirt Service

• Wedding Gown Preservation

• Free Home Pickup & Delivery

• Household & Drapery Cleaning

• Wash & Fold Service

FROM the EDITOR

It was 1990, and the media landscape in western Kentucky was striking out in a new direction. Cable had become a part of the media mix in the community, and the standard-bearers in print and broadcast were watching the world of journalism evolve into something new and completely different.

Ray Lane and I were in the midst of building a marketing firm together, and as we worked with clients around the region we heard a similar refrain. News OF and ABOUT Paducah was being lost to the region beyond our hometown. That Christmas PADUCAH LIFE Magazine was born and devoted its pages to chronicling the stories to be found in our wonderful hometown. Following is the editorial from the inaugural edition of PADUCAH LIFE Magazine. It was the first of now more than 160+ editorials I have penned since this magazine was born 30 years ago.

ON THE COVER of that very first edition in 1990 was Melissa Harper, a happy, boisterous young girl awaiting the joys of Christmas. We captured her excitement for the holiday season in this first cover photograph. Today Melissa is a wife and mom to two lively daughters of her own, Harper, 8, and Mackenzie, 6. This past Christmas we recreated that first PADUCAH LIFE cover with Melissa. Her two young daughters helped us relive that moment as they begin their LIFE in Paducah. Come along with us this year and join us in celebrating the last 30 years of PADUCAH LIFE.

Paducah/McCracken County. A city and county located in far western Kentucky. A community snuggled up to the convergence of three rivers—a river town. A rural community with a bit of a big city flair. A regional medical center. A shopping hub for a hundred-mile radius. A farm economy growing alongside a substantial industrial base. Good schools. A great place to raise a family.

These are just a few of the facts, but what about the feelings? What is LIFE like as a Paducahan? Who are we and what makes us this way? Are we different from the rest of the world? What does it mean to live life in Paducah? What is Paducah life?

Well, there are many of us who think it’s a wonderful life! Many of us who started life out here and are happy to continue living life here. Many of us who wound up here and have grown to appreciate and respect the advantages and uniqueness of a small but sophisticated community. Many of us who left and made a conscious decision to return for a quality of life that’s not so abundant in other locales. Many of us who want nothing better than to grow old here among family and friends in a place we call home.

And just as each individual story is unique, so is the community in which we live. A city isn’t gauged by the number of square feet it occupies or the kinds of businesses that are located there. A city bears a certain personality because of the relationships among its members, its connection to families and their sense of values, its balance between commerce and caring.

These are the elements which will be explored on an on-going basis in Paducah Life. We’ll look at the people and places of our hometown in a creative way. We’ll bring you colorful characterizations of local personalities. We’ll delve into our past for clues to our current way of life. We’ll probe the thoughts and minds of local leaders as well as concerned citizens. We’ll paint a portrait of a city and county that just might surprise you with its wit and wisdom.

We hope you’ll join us on this engaging journey. And we hope that because of the trip, you’ll get more out of life—Paducah Life!

Darlene M. Mazzone