2026 AMERICAN HONEY BEE QUEEN Delanie Craighead, a native of Descanso, California, a graduate of UC-Davis and a former Peace Corps volunteer in South America, visited Woodford County on March 4 and 5 as the guest of the Bluegrass Beekeepers Association and the Capital City Beekeepers. Craighead, who serves as a national spokesperson for the American Beekeeping Federation (ABF), spoke at the annual Bluegrass Beekeeping School at Kentucky State University on March 7. Honeybees are responsible for nearly one-third of our entire diet, through the pollination services they provide for a large majority of fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes. This amounts to nearly $19 billion per year of direct value from honeybee pollination to U.S. agriculture, according to the ABF website. There are several beekeepers in Woodford County, whose products are often for sale at the Woodford County Farmers Market and area festivals. Craighead is pictured with Woodford County Judge-Executive James Kay, who proclaimed March 8 – 12 as Beekeepers Week in Woodford County. (Photo by Ellen Melcher)