Heather Hyden (Left) and Alexa Arnold (Right) outside of the new CFA office in downtown Frankfort
| Hello! I am Heather Hyden and am excited to be a new Organizer focused on linking the energies around Farm to Table and Food Security. I am originally from Memphis, TN and received my BA in Geography and Urban Planning from the University of Memphis. During that time, I spent a year abroad in England studying Economic Geography, Environmental Preservation and City and Rural Planning. I also worked in Memphis as an organizer developing faith-based partnerships for community development and youth empowerment as well as managing a community garden that sold to multiple markets in the city including restaurants.
I previously worked for the public health department in Nashville, TN as the School Garden Coordinator where I developed a coalition of community leaders and local organizations to coordinate and develop resources. With the help of the coalition, gardens were lifted as model programs for nutrition education, agriculture literacy, environmental stewardship and fresh food access and ultimately influenced Farm to School policy and city-wide Urban Agriculture policy. My work in agriculture (even if it is urban) has even influenced my mother to go back to college. I’m proud she is studying Agriculture and Political Science at MTSU in Murfressboro, TN. My immediate family are all recovering urbanites, searching for our agrarian heritage….maybe I’ll find mine in Hyden, KY. The best way to reach me is on my cell at 615-975-5459 and my email at heather@cfaky. |
Hi, I’m Alexa Arnold, and I’m thrilled to be on board as one of CFA’s newest Organizers. My primary focus at CFA will be working with Eastern Kentucky communities on local food system development issues. My grandmother grew up in Morgan County, my grandfather in Lexington, and they eventually spent time in Cynthiana where they raised tobacco, soy and cattle. Over the past year, my grandparents decided to sell the family farm and the modern realities of farming in Kentucky hit close to home. I am excited to take this position as an opportunity to better understand my family’s history while working in communities so similar to their own.
Originally raised in northern Ohio, I spent time in Birmingham, AL during high school and eventually moved to Lexington to study Geography and Political Science at the University of Kentucky. While in school, I fell in love with studying the relationship between people and place and established passions for supporting local agricultural economies and local food systems. I pursued these passions while I worked as the Assistant Market Manager of the Lexington Farmers Market where I worked to improve direct market selling between farmers and consumers as well as on various local food and farming issues within the community, including farm to school initiatives, food security issues and community outreach. I’m passionate about building and supporting alternative food and agricultural economies and am thrilled to have to opportunity to apply my experiences to further the goals of CFA. Contact me by phone at 205-516-6964 or by email at alexa@cfaky.org |
