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The heart of Hunt’s candy

by Cheyenne Boone
Levella Lynn Isaac, 47, (right), begins her day at Ruth Hunt Candy by talking to her friend and co-worker Carrasa Farmer, 42, as Carrasa stirs a large vat of dark chocolate. Levella and Carrasa have been close friends since Carrasa began working at the Mt. Sterling candy company about a year ago. Outside of work they go to the movies, eat dinner and spend time with their families together. "It's like a family here," said Levella.

It’s 6 a.m. , and the stir of machinery breaks the silence. Wafting from a huge stainless-steel vat, the smell of warm chocolate and bourbon fills the air.

As workers begin to trickle into the factory, short bursts of laughter can be heard throughout the building. The sun has yet to rise before the bourbon balls make their way down the production line, one by one.

Approximately four million bourbon balls are produced each year at Ruth Hunt Candy. Made with Woodford Reserve bourbon, they are one of Ruth Hunt’s most popular candies. A half pound of bourbon balls sells for $15.50. Most of the company’s products are sold online, and they often receive large orders from companies such as Liquor Barn.

As colder weather falls upon Mt. Sterling, the employees know that the chaos has just begun. They often work six to seven days a week in autumn to prepare for the Christmas demand of the most popular treats: Blue Monday candy bars, cream candy and bourbon balls.

“I love the people. I love the atmosphere,” says Levella Lynn Isaac, 47, production manager at Ruth Hunt Candy.

She has worked for Ruth Hunt for 15 years, and her curiosity motivates her to learn new things at work every day. Levella is the first person to arrive each morning to prepare for the busy day ahead. She starts up all of the machines and greets everyone with a smile as each clocks in.

Ruth Tharpe Hunt established the candy business in 1921 in the basement of her home, working with her daughter, Emily, and other women to create a business that would become one of Kentucky’s most iconic brands. In three years, Ruth Hunt Candy will celebrate its 100th anniversary.

Continuing the tradition set by the founder, most of Ruth Hunt’s current employees are women, including the office, production and factory managers. Behind the scenes of this historic company, they dedicate countless hours to keep the legacy alive for the community of Mt. Sterling and customers around the country. Their passion and attention to detail has helped this business continue to thrive.

The handcrafted confections they produce are not just candy, but symbols of love, memories, legacy, family and home. They have touched the lives of many in more intimate ways than most will ever know. Even the process of making the candy has brought these workers from many different walks of life together.

They encourage, celebrate important milestones and help each other through difficult times. In a couple of weeks, an employee who was hired by the original founder of Ruth Hunt Candy in 1955 will celebrate her 80th birthday. In honor of the woman’s hard work and dedication to the business, the other women are all pitching in to throw a small party for her.

Hidden in the back of a quaint little store in Mt. Sterling, the strong and hard working women of Ruth Hunt Candy work not only as a team but also as a family.

Levella (left) and Tina Beverly, 40, run a creamy confection mixture through a machine that shapes the center part of bourbon balls into round pieces. Bourbon balls are one of Ruth Hunt Candy's most popular candy. They are made with Woodford Reserve bourbon, another iconic brand in Kentucky.
Levella looks in the mirror as she tucks her hair underneath her hair net before beginning work at 6 a.m. Levella has been Ruth Hunt's production manager for more than 15 years.
Tina places a full tray of bourbon balls on a rack where they will later be transferred onto the production line to be covered in chocolate and decorated with pecans. The bourbon balls are then packaged and shipped all around the United States to individuals and companies, such as Liquor Barn. Every year Ruth Hunt sells approximately four million bourbon balls.
Teresa Bailey (center, left), 59, and Monda Martin, 79, and two young Amish girls delicately place pecans on the tops of freshly made bourbon balls. Monda began working at Ruth Hunt Candy in 1955 when she was 16 years old. She was hired by the founder of the company, Ruth Tharpe Hunt.
Carrasa uses a practiced technique to create a decorative detail on the tops of handmade dark chocolate-covered caramels. Quality is something that the women strive for in all of the candies that they produce.
Jeridan Dixon (center), 8, waits in excitement with his mother, Cerara Goodpaster (left), for bourbon ball candies to appear on the production line. They toured the Mt. Sterling candy factory as part of a field trip for second- and third-grade students from Rodburn Elementary School in Morehead.
Teresa walks to a vacant field next to Ruth Hunt Candy to smoke a cigarette during her 30-minute lunch break. She works part time, because a lot of her time is spent caring for her grandchildren.
Monda eats her lunch quietly as she sits alone in the breakroom. Now a part-time employee, she started working for Ruth Hunt when she was 16 years old and then took some time off to be a full-time mother. "I loved doing what I was doing," says Monda, explaining why she returned to the store after so many years away.
Levella (left) gives a high-five to Carrasa for encouragment before an NBC television news crew arrives to document production of hemp chocolates at Ruth Hunt Candy. Carrasa began working for the business about a year ago, and she is still being trained by the former employee that previously held her position.