Brunch and Bibelots at the Headley-Whitney

By Howard M. Snyder hsnyder@herald-leader.com

The invitation handed to me by my colleague, Beverly Fortune, said Marylou Whitney and the board of directors of the Headley-Whitney Museum was inviting me to Brunch and Bibelots, a benefit for the museum's expansion program.

Oh, dahling ... I couldn't wait.

But first, I had to call the museum and tell them I would be covering the event. It was Fortune's invitation, and I didn't want any surprises. I got a call back from Linda Roach, chairman of the post-Derby brunch, with an all-clear.

”It will be down on the tennis court,“ she said.

I've never dined on a tennis court before. ... Who's serving? (Ba-dum-dum.)

So, late last Sunday morning, I arrived at the Headley-Whitney.

”You don't look like Beverly,“ John Hendrickson, Whitney's husband, said, laughing.

Looking around under the big white tent over at the ”tennis court,“ it looked like the same crowd that I'd seen earlier at a pre-Derby party at L.V. Harkness. Same faces, same hairdos, practically the same clothes. I was right. Meg Jewett-Leavitt, owner of L.V. Harkness, is chairman of the Headley-Whitney board. ”I'm going off the board this year. I've been on it for four years as president and not king ... or queen“ she said. Oh, and ”Jon Carloftis designed this ... the tennis court.“

Carloftis, a Kentucky native and Lexington resident, is well known for designing rooftop gardens in New York. ”Now we call it our Carloftis Garden,“ Jewett-Leavitt said of the tennis court.

Hendrickson said, ”This brunch is kicking off the celebration of our expansion. ... Six thousand square feet that we are adding on to the museum, so we can display the Smithsonian exhibits. We should be completed in about eight months.“

The museum has been affiliated with The Smithsonian Institution since 1996. It offers non-profit cultural and educational organizations like the Headley-Whitney the opportunity to have access to Smithsonian collections. Hendrickson boasted, ”This is our signature event. Almost everybody from the horse industry is involved in this. This is the place to be after the Derby.“

”And may I say,“ Jewett-Leavitt added, ”were it not for the kindness of John Hendrickson and Marylou Whitney, it would not be, so we are just thrilled.“

Hendrickson proclaimed, ”This will be one of the greatest museums in the country.“

With Whitney, who is back from a recent illness, was Sue Wylie, formerly of WLEX television and now of WVLK talk radio.

”She's one of my best friends,“ Wylie said of Whitney, ”and Marylou is as charming as ever.“

Whitney added, ”I was on Sue's first show.“

Guests sipped champagne and mimosas under the all-white tent, then dined on a wonderful brunch.

By the way, Bayou Bluegrass Catering served.