Nikki Key - Louisville actress, host, web video, spokesperson

My life began in Cairo, Illinois.  My mom lived in Cairo until her early thirties when our family moved to Kentucky, and my maternal grandparents lived their entire life in Cairo.  Even my maternal great-grandparents, all four of them, lived their adult lives in Cairo, Illinois.  So you can imagine the warm feelings and love I feel for this town.  I will always cherish skipping rocks at the river, the Mississippi River, with my Granddad and going for milkshakes at the Dairy Hut.  For anyone who has never visited this small river town, there is so much history.  Among my favorite spots include the Custom House, Magnolia Manor, Riverlore, and the Cairo Public Library.  Cairo was at the epicenter of racial riots in the late 60s and never seemed to recover from the turmoil and upheaval the town experienced.

This article was just published about Cairo, Illinois in Time Magazine.  One of my family friends and former resident of Cairo, Sara Rust, located and passed it along.  Few people know that Cairo, Illinois had the highest per capita of millionaires in the early 1900s.  Opera houses, hotels, and beautiful mansions were all part of this prosperous town. 

The state of West Virginia and Three Dog Films recently collaborated to produce several anti-drug commercials.  They are raising awareness on the deadly outcomes of sharing prescription medicine.  It is vitally important we don't share prescription medicine as the reaction with another's medicine can cause serious medical problems and death.  This was the commercial I shot for this project.

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Ask anyone who knows me even slightly and they will tell you how much I love to travel!  I'm not sure you can classify traveling as a hobby, but if you can, that would rank #1 on my list!  I would pick traveling to a new, exotic location or a fun, favorite spot any day over a new bag, a great pair of shoes, or a fabulous outfit.  There's something to be said for visiting places you've never been, getting immersed in a new culture, and making new friends.

Between my travels for work and my travels with my family and friends, my suitcase gets packed about every 2-3 weeks.  Sometimes even a bit more!  But one of my favorite things about traveling is not only getting to meet new people, but also catching up with old friends.  God has richly blessed me with so many wonderful opportunities in my life and people I have met during those times. From living in Austria for a summer, to working at Walt Disney World on the college program, to my studies at Oxford, I have friends across the globe; and with technology in this day and age and my amount of travel, it has allowed me to keep in touch with friends I otherwise may have lost touch with over the years. 

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Paducah Life Magazine
Murray State University Alumni Magazine
Courier Journal
Murray State News | Murray Ledger & Times

For Christmas this year my family spent a week on the beautiful island of Barbados.  Waking up on Christmas day and walking out to a beautiful beach with 85+ degree temperature is my idea of Christmas weather!  While we had many adventures during our time on the island, one of my favorites was attempting to surf.  Or I should say I attempted to surf, my brother, Jarad, was successful...on his first try!  Little athletic guy!  Well, he's actually 6'4", but he definitely won on this venture!

Our first day we rented a surf board for the week.  I wanted to buy us surfing lessons as part of my Christmas gift to my brother, but he was adamant that he had watched several YouTube videos on surfing and could easily pick it up.  And he did.  After he spent an hour perfecting and learning what he was doing, I decided to give it a go!  And while I had fun, I couldn't seem to be quick enough on the popping up part.  Balancing on the board, paddling, even pushing up didn't give me trouble, I was just slow on bringing my feet up.  I made several attempts and Jarad decided maybe I should practice on the beach....