Picture waking up to the gentle sounds of the countryside, surrounded by rolling pastures and a sense of stillness. For Cheryl French, 72, this peaceful life is the latest chapter in a remarkable journey.
Driven by a lifelong love for science and animals, she earned her bachelor’s degree from Kentucky State University and her doctorate in veterinary medicine from Tuskegee University in Alabama, launching a career that took her far beyond her rural roots.
As a veterinarian and later as a specialist with the United States Department of Agriculture, Cheryl’s work spanned the globe — from Central America to Africa to Washington, D.C. After decades of adventure and service, she retired as a foreign service officer and came back to where it all began: the tranquil fields of Kentucky.
Cheryl has had a life full of joy. She has many friends who live in other states, and two brothers who live nearby. While part of many different clubs and organizations in Mason County, the most prominent thing Cheryl does on a day-to-day basis is farming. She has 115 acres and owns and cares for 28 cows and 21 calves, plus two dogs and three cats.
Cheryl lives alone in the quiet countryside, has never married or had children.
“I do sometimes wish I had a guy to cuddle with … but I wouldn’t want him to be with me for more than three or four days,” she said. “That would be the icing on the cake, if I could find someone who understood my lifestyle and wasn’t clingy.”
But that doesn’t mean she is lonely.
“I could sit in the corner and look at you all day and not need any interaction,” she said.
