FRANKFORT, Ky. — Gov. Andy Beshear announced that Kentucky Personnel Cabinet Deputy Secretary Lindy Casebier will become secretary of the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet following Secretary Mike Berry’s retirement in February 2023.Lindy Casebier, a Louisville native, was appointed by Gov. Beshear in December 2019 as Deputy Secretary for the Kentucky Personnel Cabinet after many years as a public school educator, administrator, legislator and non-profit director. Casebier previously served in senior roles within the Kentucky Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet. For 18 years, Casebier represented Louisville in the Kentucky General Assembly, where he chaired the Senate Education Committee. Prior to joining the Beshear administration, he served as executive director of Louisville Visual Art.“I’m honored to be back at the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet and thank Gov. Beshear for asking me to serve,” Casebier said. “Tourism and the arts are vital in fostering economic growth in Kentucky. I look forward to building on the cabinet’s mission and vision by showcasing the commonwealth’s rich heritage and creative industries to travelers from across the globe.”Casebier assumes the role as Secretary Berry announced his retirement. Gov. Beshear appointed Berry to serve as Secretary of the Tourism, Arts, and Heritage Cabinet on Dec. 10, 2019. Before his appointment, Berry was President and CEO of the Kentucky Derby Festival.As part of Gov. Beshear’s administration, Secretary Berry was instrumental in helping with the state’s emergency response efforts. During the pandemic, the Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet’s agencies took an aggressive approach to prevent the spread of COVID-19, providing essential services to the Commonwealth. Throughout the pandemic, four Kentucky State Parks provided temporary housing for first responders, front-line healthcare workers and low-acuity patients.
Three agencies utilized their venues as vaccination sites, and the cabinet rolled out a vaccination incentive, “Vax and Visit,” to encourage Kentuckians to vaccinate. After the Dec. quad-state tornado in Western Kentucky and flooding in Eastern Kentucky in July, eleven Kentucky State Parks served as community resources, providing emergency shelter and food services for displaced families and first responders and providing temporary housing to more than 1,160 individuals and 250 first responders.Gov. Beshear and Secretary Berry made critical investments in the tourism and arts industries to help foster economic recovery and growth in Kentucky. Throughout the pandemic, the commonwealth invested more than $13 million in the tourism industry to strengthen promotional and advertising efforts. In 2021, the commonwealth invested nearly $1.7 million in federal funding to support the recovery of the arts industry. The most recent investment of $75 million in federal funding – a product of historic, bipartisan cooperation between the Governor, the Kentucky General Assembly and the federal government – will further boost Kentucky’s $11.2 billion tourism industry to surpass pre-pandemic numbers and position Kentucky as a premier travel destination.Click here for more Kentucky business news.
