11 people worth getting to know

Published: September 22, 2011

Lexington has plenty of interesting people who are improving their city and our lives by following their passions. Not all of them make headlines, so we picked out just a few of the many worth knowing.

Debra Hensley: The insurance agent started Debra's Social $timulus parties at interesting locations, such as a local cemetery/community garden, to feature cool things going on in Lexington.

Ginny Ramsey: She's Lexington's most tireless advocate for the city's most needy residents, finding ways to house and feed many of them at the Catholic Action Center.

Ryan Koch and Rebecca Self: As executive director and education director of Seedleaf, Koch and Self help nurture community gardens and communities, showing people how to grow, cook, preserve and compost food that's good for Lexington.

Yvonne Giles: Giles started researching her own family's history at African Cemetery No. 2. Now in semi-retirement, she's become one of Lexington's experts on African-American history, holding court at the Robert H. Williams Cultural Center on a volunteer basis.

Bruce Burris: For more than 20 years, Burris, an artist, has helped people with disabilities realize their artistic potential with partnerships, programs and workshops at Latitude, a downtown studio.

Keith Madison: Madison coached the University of Kentucky baseball team for 25 years. Now retired, he's become a baseball missionary, visiting countries like the Dominican Republic to hold free baseball clinics for children.

Rob Hinkle: He helped put on the largest equestrian event ever held in the United States, the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games at the Kentucky Horse Park. Now Hinkle is at the helm of the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, trying to help Kentucky's signature horse-racing industry save horses that are past their prime.

Rosario Picardo: The former Marine wants to make religion more appealing to anyone and everyone. So his Embrace Church holds Sunday services at the Kentucky Theatre downtown, trying to update the Scriptures to make them more accessible.

Knox van Nagell: As the head of the Fayette Alliance, van Nagell is working to protect Fayette County's heritage farmland by advocating for a denser and more vibrant urban core.

Dr. Patrick DeLuca: The University of Kentucky is filled with people who reach out to the school and the community. But DeLuca is one who stands out as the co-founder of the Faith Pharmacy, which provides prescription medicines to indigent people throughout Central Kentucky. The pharmacy has given out 36,000 prescriptions to more than 3,000 patients.

More Central Kentucky bucket lists: