Katie Moyer: Lexington Hemp Seminar a Huge Success

The seminar was amazing; it was the most gorgeous venue, and perfect setting, at the Red Mile Horsetrack on the outskirts of downtown Lexington.  It was a beautiful day, borderline hot, and the atmosphere was electric.  Guests of the seminar started rolling in just before 5 P.M. and continued to swarm the place until we had a crowd of at least 50 people.  There were drinks served by the finest bar manager in Lexington, who is a farmer himself (and now thinking about hemp.)  And when you stepped into the Round Barn, you felt like you went back in time about 100 years.  There were antique carriages and a gorgeous three-story chandelier hanging over a hemp brake designed by Thomas Jefferson himself.  It was the perfect setting to talk about a plant that’s just as much a part of Kentucky’s history as horses and horse racing.

Among our guests were several very key individuals in the hemp movement.  Jonathan Miller, former KY State Treasurer and webmaster at therecoveringpolitician.com has been a vocal supporter of industrial hemp, and has even written an article for the Huffington Post supporting the cause.  He did a wonderful job of being the emcee, as several other key individuals surprised us by showing up.  Jonathan rolled with the change in plans, allowing us to seamlessly introduce several other speakers.  State Senator Robin Webb, who signed on as a co sponsor to HB 100 back in 1998, came in and gave an impromptu speech, as did State Senator Damon Thayer, who is still on the fence about hemp, but is making great strides as he learns more about the crop.

The best part about the whole thing was the broad spectrum of political parties there.  There were jokes all night about the “strange bedfellows” who showed up at our seminar.  There were self-proclaimed liberals and Tea Party Republicans, Ron Paul supporters and Progressive Democrats.  There were small-business people, nurses, a published UK professor, members of several grassroots organizations, political candidates, and media outlets, including everyone’s favorite political blogger and a writer from the Associated Press in Louisville.  We should be looking out for a feature article on industrial hemp from the AP and a mention in Business Lexington some time next week.  There was even a guy who rode his motorcycle all the way from Philadelphia, Pa just to show off the healing properties of the hemp foods and supplements he sells, and a young man who was starting his own business making lip balm from hemp oil!  And I mustn’t forget Molly Galbraith, daughter of Gatewood Galbraith, a true pioneer in the fight for legalized hemp and a big reason why I joined this movement.

Thank you all for making this seminar a huge success!