People of NKY: From Paris (France) fate led Catherine to Steve Hayden, then to Covington, a city with guts

By Ginger Dawson
NKyTribune reporter

How on earth does a French woman, born and raised in Paris, end up living in Covington, Kentucky?  

Now, I didn’t say Paris, Kentucky.  I mean Paris, France.

Catherine Hayden started learning English at the age of eleven years.  It was apparent, early on, that she had a great aptitude for language and the written word.  

It is common in many, if not most European countries, to focus on learning English.

We ugly Americans are lucky in that when we find ourselves out of our depth in a foreign land, the natives do us the courtesy of understanding us, even though we may not understand them.

Catherine has never been out of her depth.  No matter where she has been, she has learned to speak the language.

When it was time for Catherine to attend college -— English, being her chosen subject — it seemed prudent to go to an English-speaking country.

England was a possibility, but it was the late 1960’s. Catherine’s mother was hesitant to send her daughter to “Swinging London.”  It was the era of drugs, rock and roll, and the Rolling Stones holding court to the outrage of the status quo.  

Queen’s University in Belfast, Northern Ireland seemed a better choice.  

If only one could look into the future, at least once.

In just a scant six months, in 1969, the Irish Republican Army went through a shift in factions and method. The IRA was originally formed and dedicated to the idea that Ireland should be an independent country from British Imperialism. The adoption of violence and terrorism in Northern Ireland (under British rule), made Belfast a particularly dangerous place to be.

Plans were quickly made, and Catherine moved to London. It was a perfect fit. 

She loved London and had a career there working for Hospital Corporation of America International, a company headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee.

It would be her first contact with America, albeit from a distance.

She had a great time in London. She was single and content with her life.

One evening, a young work colleague invited Catherine for an evening out with her and her boyfriend.  

These two had also invited their houseguest, one of the boyfriends’ co-workers.

Catherine was not particularly keen to join them.  The thought of an evening out with a younger crowd was not her cup of tea. But, she went anyway.

The houseguest turned out to be not just a contemporary—close to her own age, but something even more.  

Fate has the weirdest way, sometimes.

Steve Hayden-houseguest, from Owensboro, Kentucky, was at the vanguard of the information technology revolution.  

By 1986, he was working in Saudi Arabia for the Ministry of Finance Customs Department. Travel and vacation was an unusual perk of this job. The cultural differences that foreign employees were exposed to were viewed as “cultural hardship,” and therefore warranted long vacations from this stress.

He had spent time on these vacations in China and Japan. A trip to Russia was in the works when the Chernobyl disaster, the worst nuclear accident in history, occurred.

This ended that visit, and redirected him to London, staying with the co-worker. 

Catherine and Steve connected. It was a case of love at first sight.

Over a period of time, she and Steve communicated long distance (he was still based in Saudi Arabia) and ultimately spent a week together in Cairo, Egypt.  

It was the most wonderful, exotic time of Catherine’s life and she and Steve decided to be together for good. Steve finally moved to London and they married in 1989.

In January 1990, they had a son, Claron.  

After a trip to Owensboro to visit family, it was decided that this would be a good place to raise a little boy and give him and his grandmother a chance to know one another.

It was a bit of a cultural shock for Catherine. But, she went into it with her eyes open.  

They had a beautiful house, unusual for the area in that it was Tudor-style; the comfort of an English aesthetic.  It also had the benefit of a park-like setting with mature trees.

Catherine maintained a close relationship with her own Parisian mother as well. Her mother visited Owensboro 20 times over those years. Catherine and Steve also took her on many long vacations.  

In addition, they also traveled to London and Paris for extended visits. Claron went with them and got a chance to become acquainted with where he and his mother had been born, and where his parents had met.

In Owensboro, school for Claron turned out to be an unusually lucky thing. He was interested in the performing arts, and Owensboro High School had a great theatre program. This program opened many doors and provided opportunities for him.

After Claron graduated from school and left for college, Catherine decided to volunteer at the International Bluegrass Music Museum in Owensboro. This lead to a job for her where she worked in archives, on exhibits and was the membership coordinator.  

Wherever she goes, she learns to speak the language.

The empty nest also provided the opportunity for Steve and Catherine to consider moving from Owensboro and to an area where culture and the arts were closer at hand. Their priorities had changed.

They considered many places, even Charlottesville, Virginia.  

Since Claron was enrolled at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, the Cincinnati area had the most appealing draw.  Now they could have both culture and son.

A trip to Covington to see Claron perform in a play at The Carnegie, a performing arts, education and art gallery space, brought them to this city for the first time. 

In Catherine’s words: “When we came from the freeway down to 5th, I saw the clock tower and the buildings around it, then my eye caught Mainstrasse.

“I loved the older townhouses on 5th, the trees, people walking. 

“Onto Roebling point, we had dinner outside at Keystone. I loved the feel of everything around—charming. 

“We had parked on E 2nd St – the juxtaposition of the Ascent, the Rivercenter, the bridge, the old and the new, was very avant to me – it showed progressive thinking at its best. 

“These were just the first impressions. Later we discovered the astonishingly rich architectural stock and the incredible variety. I loved the hills, the Licking and the Ohio junction; the walk-ability; the Cinci skyline. Add to that the communications – freeways and international airport.”

This was a city that she and Steve considered to be visionary and bold. A city with guts.

Catherine and Steve moved to Covington in November of 2012. They feel that their original impressions have borne out.

The two are engaged in civic organizations and events.  They attend city commission meetings and anything that involves Covington. Steve is particularly active.  

For one, he is a member of the Covington Neighborhood Collaborative, an umbrella organization for the many neighborhood associations that exist.

Every morning, Catherine starts her day by taking a walk around her Covington neighborhood with Lou Lou, her gregarious dog.  

A little over ten years ago, Catherine decided that it was time for her to become a U.S. citizen. She went through the process (there is quite a bit to it) and in April, 2009, she attained her goal. It was a big event and she was happy to be an American.

She particularly values her right to vote. It is puzzling to her that so many seem to have opinions about issues and politics, yet don’t bother to vote!  

It IS a puzzler.

One of Catherine’s favorite quotes is from the book Zen and the Art of Happiness by Chris Prentiss. It is particularly apt:  “No snowflake ever falls in the wrong place.”

And this is the short story of how a French woman ends up in Covington, Kentucky.

Ginger Dawson writes about people — the neighbors you need to know and people you need to meet and understand. If you have ideas for subjects please share them with Ginger at ginger@fuse.net.