By: Charles Romans
Carter County Times
Kentucky Christian University held a ribbon cutting to unveil their new bass fishing facility late last month. The new building, which will house twelve bass boats and all their assorted gear, supports the university’s highly competitive bass fishing program by sheltering the boats from the elements when they are not being used and providing the students with a clean and dry location where they are able to make any necessary changes and upgrades to their equipment. It also provides a secure parking location that is monitored by both people and cameras.
“I want to express the institutions appreciation for this building,” KCU President Terry Allcorn said at the ribbon cutting. “It is fantastic, and I appreciate the Keeney family’s vision to make this happen. A lot of people on campus worked very hard on this building to make it happen. And we are grateful for the contributions all of you have made.”
Grayson Mayor Troy Combs said that he considered himself fortunate to be able to work with everyone involved in the fishing complex project.
“On the city’s behalf, the only thing I can say is how proud I am to have this beautiful facility here,” Combs said. “We have always been proud to have Kentucky Christian University here in Grayson, and for university to be a part of this community.”
Combs said that Grayson is excited to see what KCU does next and will always welcome being part of it.
The new building, which has been named The Keeney Fishing Complex, is a result of a generous donation from the Keeney Family and lots of volunteer hours. Josh and Amy Keeney, parents of KCU student Reese Keeney, live about a half hour south of Green Bay, Wisconsin. Josh Keeney shared part of the story behind how their son came to attend KCU.
“Reese came up through youth bass fishing and then high school bass fishing, where he won the High School National Championship,” Keeney said.
Keeney shared that his son was never a ‘college’ kid, and they thought that he would choose a technical school instead of traditional college degree programs. So, he and his wife started researching schools that offered scholarships for fishing – something that is on the rise nationally. This led them to visit several schools, including KCU.
Keeney said that in spite of being far from home, KCU was the right size, and that his family was impressed by the leadership of Kentucky Christian University.
“So, he got accepted,” Keeney said. “And he has excelled and developed a passion for academics to match his lifelong passion for fishing. It’s a win-win for everyone. They (KCU) are changing these kids’ lives.”
Keeney said that a lot of the bigger schools don’t know much about their students’ lives, but said that the exact opposite is true at Kentucky Christian University.
“They are really connected, and the kids have access to the leadership in their daily lives. That is a huge benefit to the students, and it was one of the things that helped Reese choose KCU.”
Keeney said that donating to make the new facility a reality wasn’t just about his son, but was “the right thing to do.” His son will only be at KCU for another year, but there will be other students who need what the facility has to offer.
“This program will grow well beyond what we are doing today,” he said. “We are building a legacy for the future, because college fishing is the feeder program for professional fishing. And when you see it all come together like this you realize it was the right thing to do.”
Contact the writer at charles@cartercountytimes.com
