The annual Leitchfield-Grayson County Chamber of Commerce Dinner was held Thursday night at Rough River Lodge.
The highlight of the evening was Judge-Executive Kevin Henderson presenting the family of late Magistrate Robby Higdon with the Community Service Award in honor of Higdon’s generosity and dedication to helping the Grayson County community.
Higdon passed away after a long battle with cancer on July 7, 2019, at the age of 43.
Henderson, who was friends with Higdon for over 30 years, was emotional when recounting the many good works Higdon performed over his lifetime.
He offered one personal story that exemplifies Higdon’s many selfless acts when telling audience members that in 2009, during the ice storm that ravaged the county, Higdon was building a house near Henderson’s home.
In a terrible accident, the Henderson’s dog was run over and killed in front of his children. As Higdon was helping Henderson dig a hole to bury the dog, they discovered the ground was frozen, making it impossible to dig a hole with a shovel.
Higdon, without prompting by Henderson, responded by driving to Clarkson – during the ice storm recovery efforts – and returned with a backhoe to dig the pet’s grave so Henderson’s children could bury their dog.
Henderson said Higdon donated money to sports teams, clubs, and anyone or organization that requested assistance. Higdon gave to the point, according to Henderson, that his wife Nichole was worried about their ability to pay the family’s bills.
Higdon gave of his time and money without any desire for publicity or an expectation of anything in return, Henderson said. He loved people and loved helping those in need, Henderson added, and led by example not admonitions.
Recalling Higdon’s reputation for giving and getting things done, Henderson said one of Higdon’s favorite quotes are words of wisdom from President Ronald Reagan, who said “There is no limit to the amount of good you can do if you don’t care who gets the credit.”
Words, Henderson said, we should all live by.
Nichole Higdon, on her personal Facebook page, said about her late husband being honored with the Community Service Award:
Tonight was a special night honoring Robby Higdon. If he was here he would have told everyone, no, there was always someone else to give it (the award) to. Thank you to the Chamber and members of the community for loving us and praying for us but most of all for keeping Robby’s spirit alive. We love the stories that are shared and hearing how he helped people. I just hope I touch as many people in my life time as he has in 43 years.
The Higdon family was also presented with a resolution passed by the Kentucky General Assembly in Robby Higdon’s honor, recognizing his selfless attitude toward his fellow citizens. The resolution was presented to the family by former state Representative Tim Moore and state Senator Steve Meredith.
(Headline photo: Robby Higdon’s son Noah with the Community Service Award given to the Higdon family)
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
