When I thought of names to call an upcoming program involving Wade and Alice Houston, so many came to mind. Community icons or treasures are a given, certainly mentors and leaders; words like impact came to mind, barrier breakers for sure—but I landed on “Leading by Example.”

If you’ve heard them speak, they will tell you mentoring and giving back to their community is part of their DNA, their calling—they lead by example. They create the picture of what is possible and hope others will follow their lead.

And what has been possible for this couple is extraordinary, and not always easy.

Wade Houston, Eddie Whitehead, and Sam Smith became the first Black basketball players to sign with the University of Louisville. Houston would go on to become the first Black assistant coach in U of L history under Denny Crum, eventually becoming the SEC’s first Black head coach at Tennessee.

Oh, the lessons learned with each of those steps. And not just for Wade, of course, but also for Alice, who grew up the daughter of legendary Louisville Central coach William Kean, a pioneer for desegregation. How fitting Alice was a cheerleader at Central.

The family’s story is part of our Kentucky Rivalries exhibition at the Frazier, which also includes their son Allan. KET also recently featured them in a wonderful documentary with a clip here.

Sports is only part of their story: their successful business is, too. Wade and Alice co-founded Louisville-based HJI Supply Chain Solutions. They sit on too many boards to name, have received too many awards to count, and have given back in ways we know, and will never know.

They are a team in every sense of the word—as a couple, as a family, as a business, and with their community. Now you get a front row seat with Wade and Alice, to ask questions and learn from their words of wisdom, in our program on April 19 as we team with the city’s Office of Equity as a partner.

Mayor Craig Greenberg will join us for a few words about the Houstons’ leadership, and special guests will join us with personal stories about their impact. We hope you will join us to be inspired by their example, and see what is possible through dedication, persistence, and resilience.

Get your tickets now for what will be a very special evening.

Also in this edition of Frazier Weekly, more on the Houstons’ story in Kentucky Rivalries, March Madness begins but leaves some behind, another sure sign of spring with Derby pins, and why the Frazier is bragging just a bit in this issue!

Rachel Platt
Director of Community Engagement
Frazier History Museum

This Week in the Museum

Curator’s Corner: Kean/Houston Family Represented in Kentucky Rivalries

From archrival teams like the Cats and the Cards to dueling editors, competing caves, and beefing barbecues, Kentucky Rivalries celebrates the most iconic conflicts in the Bluegrass State. As we promote this interactive exhibition, which opened November 5, our Frazier Weekly contributors will spotlight the history behind some of the rivalries featured in it.—Simon Meiners, Communications & Research Specialist

In our latest temporary exhibition Kentucky Rivalries, we highlight and feature many successful athletes from around the state. These athletes broke records, and some went professional. But one family’s legacy stretches three generations.

The Kean/Houston story starts with William Kean (1899–1958) of Louisville, Kentucky. He coached at Central High School from 1923 until 1956 during the height of Jim Crow. He was a trailblazer in desegregating Kentucky athletics. During his twenty-three-year career, his teams won 856 games while losing only 83 and while also securing five Kentucky High School Athletic League championship titles and four National Negro High School titles. You can read about Alice (née Kean) Houston’s experience of her father’s legacy at Central in the exhibition.

Wade (Alice) Houston married into the Kean family with a basketball legacy all his own. Wade Houston became the first African American to receive a basketball scholarship to the University of Louisville in 1962. After coaching under Denny Crum, Houston became the first African American coach in the SEC when he accepted a head coaching position at the University of Tennessee in 1989.

Allan Houston is the son of Wade and Alice Houston. He is the third generation of basketball greats within the family. Allan attended Ballard High School in Louisville and helped win the state championship in 1989. He attended the University of Tennessee where he was coached by his father Wade. He went on to become a professional basketball player, signing with the Detroit Pistons then the New York Knicks.

Learn about these greats and more in our Kentucky Rivalries exhibition, which is now open!

Casey Harden
Director of Exhibit Ideation

To paraphrase Dickens, it is the best of times and the worst of times for college basketball fans in the Commonwealth. The two most prestigious men’s basketball programs in Kentucky have gone in opposite directions this season. Yet, both have offered their respective fanbases a little bit of everything this year: intrigue, drama, heartbreak, frustration, despair, and elation.

If you’re a fan of John Calipari and the Kentucky Wildcats, you are more than likely sighing with relief that the Cats are going to the Big Dance, after all. The Cats locked up a 6 seed in the East region yesterday, when the seedings for the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament were revealed. Kentucky will play its first-round game on Friday against the 11 seed Providence Friars at Greensboro, North Carolina. However, a couple months ago, the way looked dim in Lexington.

It didn’t start that way, though. The Cats with returning National Player of the Year Oscar Tshiebwe and super frosh Casson Wallace were pegged to be a frontrunner to win the National Championship. However, after early season losses to Michigan State and Michigan, the preseason predictions seemed slightly exaggerated, even to the most diehard fans of BBN.But, in January, the bottom nearly fell out in the Bluegrass. The Cats lost at Rupp to the South Carolina Gamecocks, who were 19-point underdogs. Things got uglier that month when UK Athletic Director Mitch Barnhart made a rare radio appearance on Matt Jones’s Kentucky Sports Radio. Barnhart felt he had to hose the flames started by a report from The Athletic UK beat writer Kyle Tucker that Barnhart had put the kibosh on construction of a new men’s practice facility Cal had wanted for the Cats, despite the fact that Calipari and some of his former players had earmarked the $30 million necessary to break ground and build the complex.

Thankfully for BBN, the season began to turn around when the Cats made a change in their starting line-up, particularly at guard. When senior UK guard Savir Wheeler got hurt, Calipari began to roll the dice with the “Basketball Benny” lineup, which seemed to yield immediate dividends. First, there was an upset win at Knoxville over #5-ranked Tennessee, then a home/away sweep of the Florida Gators, and finally a convincing road victory over the Arkansas Razorbacks in Fayetteville.

And even though there were still a few hiccups along the way, particularly on a road loss at Georgia, and a Senior Night stinker at Rupp against Vanderbilt, it appears that Calipari and the Wildcats have salvaged a less-than-stellar season. It also appears, depending on how deep the Cats do go in the NCAA Tournament, that Calipari has created some wiggle room for himself with fans going into next season.

The same cannot be said for first-time head coach Kenny Payne and the Louisville Cardinals.

Though picked to finish near the bottom of the ACC standings in the preseason, Payne’s Cards came up with a losing hand just about every time they stepped onto the court. First, there was a one-point loss to Bellarmine to open the season, a heartbreaking shot by Wright State to mark a second loss, then the wave-off by officials of El Ellis’s apparent game-winning bucket in the final second against Appalachian State for loss number three.

It appeared for a time that the Cards were just snake bitten with bad luck at the start. Yet, as the season progressed, it became apparent to the press and to fans that this year’s iteration of the Louisville Cardinals was just historically bad. After the first few losses, there was the humbling of the Cards in the Maui Invitational in December, in which the Cards lost games by an average of 25.7 points.

Then there came the spanking by fellow ACC bottom-dweller Florida State and shellackings by Pitt, Clemson, North Carolina, and, of course, Kentucky.

The Cards caught a few teams sleeping this season. After the debacle in Tallahassee, the Cards returned home and pulled off the upset of the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers for Louisville’s first victory of the season. Later in the season, the Cards bested Georgia Tech at home, and took down Clemson in a rematch at the Yum! Center.

Although the Cards did improve in some areas, the team as whole was not defensively strong enough to compete night-in and night-out with even the middle-of-the-pack schools of the ACC. This was a rare occurrence in the history of one of the most storied programs in college basketball. It’s as though the 2022–23 Louisville men’s basketball team turned into a dangling red feathered pinata, and every other team and fanbase (including U of L’s own) felt entitled to take a whack at them and, by extension, Payne himself.

Thankfully for Louisville fans, the season came to a merciful end last Tuesday, when the Boston College Golden Eagles knocked out the Cardinals from the ACC Men’s Basketball Championship Tournament, winning in convincing fashion, 80-62. And, the relief was so palpable, so much so the sagest of Card pundits, cd Kaplan, kept his retrospective of the season “blissfully brief,” writing that the season had ended for the Cards in “appropriately ignominious manner.”

However, Kenny Payne remained sanguine, daresay optimistic, after the last loss. In the Boston College post-game press conference, when asked about the future of his tenure and that of his staff, Payne was taken aback by the line of questioning, expressing that he was surprised that the question was even broached. File that response under either fierce loyalty to his staff or the singlemindedness of a coach determined to right the ship. Based on reporting by the media, Payne will have another season to do that. But next season will have to wait.

For now, their archrivals are STILL dancing.

Brian West
Teaching Artist

Become a Frazier Member for Chance to Win 70-inch Samsung TV!

The submission window for our second annual Membership Madness is now open! Members have an opportunity to win a brand new 70-inch Samsung TV for free!

Members are invited to make their selections and send their completed bracket(s) (no later than tipoff on March 16) to membership@fraziermuseum.org or come to the museum and fill it out in person! Our kickoff party is tomorrow night and will give members the opportunity to get some insight and strategies on how to complete their bracket.

For those members who just want to share a beer with Frazier president Andy Treinen, we’ve got you covered! Members are invited to attend our Membership Madness Kickoff Party: Bracketology & Brews on Tuesday, March 14. (RSVP now!) Andy will discuss his take on the teams and strategies for a stronger bracket.

Pro tip: use promo code SWEET16 for $16 off when you purchase your membership at the Contributor level (3 brackets) or above. Find all the details here.

Remember, it’s not about filling out a perfect bracket—that’s why you’ve got the opportunity to fill out additional brackets! The competitor with the highest-scoring bracket submitted wins.

Have questions? Call us at (502) 412-2263.

Amanda Egan
Membership & Database Administrator

Museum Store: 2023 Kentucky Derby Festival Pegasus Pins

It’s a sure sign of spring in Louisville when the Kentucky Derby Festival Pegasus Pins go on sale. Stop in the Museum and get your pin for 2023: they’re $7 in advance and $10 at events. Spring has sprung!

Video: Making Memories at Frazier Camps

We talk a lot about how special camps at the Frazier are, but we decided to try something completely different and show you! In the video below, we’ve captured what makes our camps so special: creativity, content, and community, which all come together to make some incredible memories for the kids who spend their summers (and other school breaks!) with us.

If we pique your interest with this video, you can sign up for camps and experience them for yourself here. We hope that you’ll be a part of our community very soon!

Heather Gotlib
Manager of Youth & Family Programs

Off the Snead Shelves: Inflorescence by Ella Treinen

In the Literary Kentucky section of the museum’s Cool Kentucky exhibition, there’s a selection of books by and about Kentucky figures stored on Snead Iron Works bookcases. In Frazier Weekly’s Off the Snead Shelves series, staff members spotlight different books from the collection. For this week’s issue, we’ve asked Ella Treinen to write about her debut poetry collection, Inflorescence, which is now sold in the Frazier’s Museum Store.—Simon Meiners, Communications & Research Specialist

I’m Ella, a student, a college athlete, a feminist, and—most recently—a published author. When the Frazier asked me to comment on my new book Inflorescence for Women’s History Month, I was ecstatic and grateful. The last few months have been filled with lots of gratitude; for boundless opportunity, lovely new readers, and the written word.

Poetry was a personal safe haven originally, a messy stab at making sense of the world. With time, I dreamt about writing poems that meant something to others. After watching Greta Gerwig’s Little Women, I spent hours scribbling down the beginnings of my book, spreading the pages across my bedroom floor. A beautifully chaotic and imperfect process was underway.

While I was certainly flying by the seat of my pants, it never felt impossible. I’m aware that just over 100 years ago, women couldn’t legally vote in this country, and that access to women’s athletics wasn’t possible until Title IX was passed in 1972. However, as soon as I latched onto the idea of publishing a book of poetry before graduating college, I knew I could do it. I attribute my disregard for limitations to my strong mother who never made me feel like being a woman was a setback.

Inflorescence is a collection of poems organized into four phases of growth: breaking, budding, blossoming, and blooming. It captures many dimensions of the human experience, from rainy days to radiant patches of sunlight. It has been so exciting to share with the world, and I’m eternally grateful for those who have so eagerly celebrated it.

Learning your words mean something to others has been the best part. When people tell me my poetry describes their feelings of grief, heartbreak, or peace, I feel closest to the emotional vulnerability that allows humans to truly connect with each other. Whether you are a woman, a man, a parent, a lover, or a college student like me, I can assure you there is something in this collection for you. As different as we may appear on the surface, we can all be unified in the way we feel and love.

Ella Treinen
Author, Inflorescence
Guest Contributor

Kentucky Bourbon Distillery Spotlight: Blue Run Spirits

As the official starting point of the Kentucky Bourbon Trail®, the Frazier History Museum shares stories of the people, places, and producers of the Kentucky Bourbon industry. To learn more, visit our Kentucky Bourbon Trail® Welcome Center or tour our Spirit of Kentucky® exhibition.—Simon Meiners, Communications & Research Specialist

Georgetown’s own Blue Run Spirits has just released two new batches of their award-winning whiskies, which sold out in mere seconds when they were originally released online in 2021. Blue Run Golden Rye Whiskey Batch #2 and Blue Run Kentucky Straight High Rye Bourbon Whiskey Batch #2 are both now available online, along with mainstay whiskey Blue Run Reflection I Kentucky Straight Bourbon.

Golden Rye Whiskey Batch #2 was born from the same distillation that brought us Golden Rye Batch #1, which was released in September 2021, winning a Gold Medal at the prestigious San Francisco World Spirits Competition. Batch #2 comes from 102 select barrels and is bottled at 95 proof. It features a honey-baked graham cracker aroma surrounded by sweet grains and wood sugar. The easygoing finish rests with honey and a dash of pear syrup, highlighted by touches of ginger that add just the right tingle.

Blue Run Kentucky Straight High Rye Bourbon is a small-batch whiskey—and it’s the first Blue Run product with Bourbon Hall of Famer Jim Rutledge overseeing the production. On the tongue, Blue Run High Rye Bourbon is a caramel beauty full of baking spices and a toasted oak frame that crescendos with a stone fruit and black pepper finish. Each bottle features an iridescent coating on the brand’s signature gold butterfly to create a prismatic, rainbow-hued medallion, making it easily identifiable on any back bar.

Blue Run also recently took the wraps off its first Private Barrel Program—and it’s unlike anything the whiskey industry has seen before. Developed by Trey Wade, Blue Run’s chief experience curator, the program features elements similar to the most exciting aspects in collegiate and professional sports. Officially dubbed “CHOSEN,” the program is designed to give consumers a much more engaging experience than simply thieving whiskey from a barrel and receiving a co-branded bottle. Folks can learn more about the program at our website.

Mike Montgomery
Co-founder and CEO, Blue Run Spirits
Guest Contributor

Frazier Among Tops in Business First Largest Event Facilities List

Size matters! And so do options when it comes to selecting a space to rent for your special event.

And here at the Frazier, we have a variety of spaces to choose from.

With 40,000 square feet of rental space, the Frazier was ranked among the top in an impressive list of Louisville’s event and meeting facilities compiled by Louisville Business First for size.

We were thrilled to be among places like the Expo Center, Norton Healthcare Sports Center, KY International Convention Center, and Omni Hotel, and actually tops when it came to other local museums.

The Frazier can accommodate anything from a wedding to a corporate event, a museum buyout, and anything in between—with both intimate settings, and of course larger spaces.

Our team—which is headed by Erine Sato and staffed by Steve Rockhold and Katie Lowe—is ready to assist you with any of your needs. You can email them at events@fraziermuseum.org.

If you’d like to join our expanding team, check the careers page on our website.

We have room for you!

Rachel Platt
Director of Community Engagement