I thought that would be the end of it, but people became even more interested after that call. Mason Moussette (Mason on the Mic) called me one afternoon on my home phone, and I did my first interview that day. The news stations struggled to find me, but one radio DJ in Dallas, Texas, did. I win a few ribbons, and then I go home to start prepping for next year’s fairs. Except, that didn’t go exactly as I imagined. They were talking about me on the news, and my kids and grandkids kept sharing posts and videos of people talking about me. I hoped to pick up a few ribbons, but I walked away with a lot more. I found out when I went to collect my goods at the end of the fair. I’m not on social media, so I didn’t see that post. I won dozens of ribbons, including seven Best Overall for my baked goods, canning, and crafts. I love doing it.” Recipes from 'Blue Ribbon Kitchen'įOR MOST OF THE INTERNET, my story begins on June 13, 2022, when the Virginia-Kentucky District Fair posted the winners for their Home Economic Exhibits. Skeens knows the importance of comfort food in hard times. “If he was here, he would be proud of me.”
He would be real proud of me right now because he was the one got me started entering the fair and he loved my cooking,” she says. was killed in a work accident driving a tanker truck. Her brother Andrew was killed in the mines at age 21, a hard loss for the family.
Skeens’ father, brothers and husband all worked in coal mines for mere dollars a day. “But I was determined I was going to be a good cook someday.” I just never was interested in it,” she says. “I got married when I was 16, and my mom was a great cook and my mother-in-law, too. Recognition like Taste of the South magazine featuring her recipes means a lot to her as someone who didn’t always know how to cook, she says. Now, Skeens has released her " Blue Ribbon Kitchen" cookbook, filled with recipes, tips and descriptions of her life in Appalachia.īefore flying to New York and California for interviews, Skeens had never been on a plane before. The daughter and wife of coal miners was tickled to get so much attention. (Courtesy of 83 Press)Ī local reporter finally tracked her down and found a warm, down-to-earth, 74-year-old Appalachian grandmother. She went viral on the internet, though she didn't know because she had no social media. And even more unbelievable? Her entries won first, second, and third in the cookies, cakes and brownies categories. Her strawberry fudge won Best Overall Baked Good. Who is Linda Skeens? That became last year's question of the summer as word spread that someone at the Virginia-Kentucky District Fair had won 25 blue ribbons: Best Cake, Best Pie, Best Brownies, Best Jelly, Best Jam, Best Applesauce, Best Apple Butter, Best Pumpkin Butter, Best Sauerkraut, Best Spaghetti Sauce. Hear this interview on our podcast, Here & Now Anytime.
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