As a native of the Appalachian region, I have grown to love the mountains and discovering some of its long-forgotten history. I completed an undergraduate degree in forensic psychology and sociology and enrolled in graduate school where I obtained a master of science degree and I am currently working on an additional graduate degree in American History with research interests in the history of medicine, history of psychiatry, and civil war medicine.

I eventually discovered the Eastern State Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky and  its lengthy and fascinating history. Shortly thereafter, I stumbled upon the Eastern State Hospital Cemetery Preservation Project and founding member Phil Tkacz on social media. I worked closely with Phil to help provide a permanent online home for the project to be utilized as a resource for family members and friends of the deceased patients buried at the hospital. Both Phil and I were active in the non-profit, Kentucky History and Genealogy Network, Inc.

As we continued research, we realized that the need for this type of comprehensive resource for Kentucky institutions was almost non-existent. We branched off from the Kentucky History and Genealogy Network and together with Phil, Jay, and Robin we formed Kentucky Historic Institutions. Our group serves as a means to educate the public about the history of Kentucky’s asylums and institutions as well as to advocate for the forgotten patients buried at these places decades and centuries ago.