Raymond McLain fondly remembers KET from its start.

The Hindman, KY native says, “It was very exciting when KET went on the air [in 1968]. People who didn’t have televisions would gather with people who did and watch together; there was a real sense of community coming together to watch the programs on KET, just like they would gather to listen to music being played.”

Recalling KET founder Leonard Press’ vision, McLain says that Press “knew we needed to make sure there was exposure to all of these programs – classical music programs, GED programs, children’s programs for rural and city children alike. [Press] didn’t just have a dream. He had a whole vision of KET – he knew this would be of use to Kentuckians, of use to all people. He knew KET was going to be a way to bring us all together.”

As frontman for the McLain Family Band, Raymond has and continues to spend considerable amounts of time performing locally, nationally, even internationally. As a result, he has a keen eye for what creates community. McLain has, for decades, seen firsthand what kind of closeness the music community creates and fosters. He sees the same kind of connectivity in KET.

McLain recalls how the early days of KET were paramount for educational outreach to both rural and urban parts of the state.

I love the fact that KET celebrates all of Kentucky.

Raymond McLain

“My experience is Eastern Kentucky, rural Kentucky, but it was the same for people in urban areas as well – finally, everybody had access to those shows. Everyone’s children saw those programs, no matter where they were. The educational component was very important in the early days because, in the 1960s, there were people of all ages that never learned to read and write, and KET was able to come in and help work on that problem.” Continuing that mission today, KET educational content – used in every school district in the state – reaches across Kentucky, serving rural and urban communities alike. KET is also the largest non-profit publisher of GED educational materials in the nation, furthering the goal of adult education and literacy for all.

McLain’s exposure to KET doesn’t stop with watching early programming. In the early 1980s, he hosted a KET production called Fiddle a Little, a charming how-to for people interested in learning the basics of the instrument. He also worked with KET producers on a live music feature (based off the popular program Austin City Limits) called Bluegrass, Bluegrass, focusing on Kentucky-style bluegrass and traditional mountain music, and on a high-end production of the McLain Family Band Festival from Renfro Valley. Most recently, McLain appeared in the award-winning KET documentary Big Family: The Story of Bluegrass Music as a featured interviewee.

“I’ve worked with KET plenty over the years, and the level of care and professionalism has always been so impressive to me. You can tell the producers, everyone involved, really care about the quality of programming they’re putting out there. They want it to be the best.”

McLain has an appreciation of the cultural accuracy in the programming KET delivers, too.

“In the earlier days of TV, there were some portrayals of Kentuckians that were unkind. One of the things that KET did was portray us as we are. They showed the real thing, whether it was in music or in crafts, in all parts of our culture and across the state, not just the mountains or bluegrass regions, not just western Kentucky, not just the rural, not just the urban, but everything in between. KET celebrates all of Kentucky.”

There are parallels in McLain’s perspective of the music community in which he is so beloved and his experiences watching and working with KET. “It’s the same kind of community that I sense from both. We’re all doing this together, whether it’s adult literacy or educational programming or fiddle lessons. It’s something we all do together; we’re all part of this network. We’re all part of the community of Kentucky.”