BEATTYVILLE, Ky. — When Jacob Sinkhorn joined a routine conference call about a flood risk management study in Beattyville, Kentucky, he didn’t expect the conversation to turn into an elementary school reunion.
As a project manager with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville District, Sinkhorn was focused on the technical, community and environmental aspects of the study—until a familiar name on the participant list caught his attention: Kitty Dougoud.
“I noticed the name Kitty Dougoud and thought, there’s no way that could be my fifth-grade teacher from Georgetown,” Sinkhorn recalled. “I asked if she lived in a pink house on Main Street, and she said yes—and that she remembered me.”
Sinkhorn’s career may have officially started in college, but his creative instincts emerged much earlier in Ms. Dougoud’s fifth-grade classroom.
“I was a pretty creative kid,” he said. “I built several treehouses, two go-carts and a very dangerous ‘firework’ with resistors and a coiled wire that knocked the power out in the garage for years. I even made a desk lamp from a soda can that shorted out every plug in our classroom during show and tell.”
The impact of Dougoud’s instruction may not have been immediately evident, but her influence on Sinkhorn’s career path became clear years later.
“Ms. Dougoud was very kind and encouraging, always full of energy,” Sinkhorn said. “I don’t remember being set on a career that early, but teachers like her made learning enjoyable.”
“Jacob was a good student and a very sweet child,” Dougoud recalled. “I can see him in a plaid Henley shirt, standing behind his chair, laughing with classmates. He was a pleasure to have in class.”
Sinkhorn didn’t learn about the USACE until attending college, but once he did, he was hooked.
“I was drawn to the large-scale projects and the mission to support our military,” he said.
Initially, Sinkhorn joined the Beattyville study as the engineering technical lead but soon transitioned to project manager.
“I shifted from technical details to working more with the community and leading the broader team through the study,” Sinkhorn said.
The flood risk management study aims to protect lives and property in Beattyville while strengthening the town’s connections—both physically and within the community. It relies heavily on collaboration between USACE and local leaders in Lee County and Beattyville.
As the study progressed, Sinkhorn and community leaders identified a critical area of focus: Beattyville’s Main Street.
“The historic buildings, recent investments and beautification efforts show the town’s desire to become more flood resilient,” he said.
After a 27-year teaching career at Garth Elementary, Dougoud transitioned into historic preservation and economic development. In 2013, she joined the Kentucky Heritage Council as the state coordinator for Kentucky’s Main Street Program.
“I have worked in Beattyville for over a decade,” Dougoud said. “What began as support for downtown revitalization evolved into something much deeper in 2021.”
In that year, Dougoud helped the community recover from a devastating flood.
“I suddenly had to become something of a first responder for downtown disasters,” Dougoud said. “We learned a lot and applied those lessons the next year when eastern Kentucky was hit by a hundred-year flood.”
She now helps communities like Beattyville rebuild and reimagine their futures.
“I attend meetings, offer insight and help locals process the information and options presented by the Corps,” she said.
“Kitty has been a huge help,” Sinkhorn said. “She’s connected us with local resources and shared lessons learned across other communities. Her collaboration with Teresa Mays, who’s been instrumental in the study, has created a powerful force for preservation and resilience.”
For Sinkhorn and Dougoud, the reunion was unexpected but meaningful.
“When I saw Jacob’s name on the attendee list, I thought, I taught a Jacob Sinkhorn,” Dougoud said. “It was a great icebreaker. That personal connection helped make the meeting less tense for everyone.”
Their working relationship has evolved into a collaboration that has improved communication during the study.
“Now the roles are reversed—Jacob is teaching me,” Dougoud said. “I’m learning so much from him and the Corps, and I appreciate all they’re doing for Beattyville.”
“It was great to see a kind, familiar face join the project,” Sinkhorn said. “It’s hard to connect a federal feasibility study to my fifth-grade experience, but having someone like Kitty involved reminds me of the importance of human connection in these efforts.”
As the study nears its final stages, both Sinkhorn and Dougoud continue to champion the community of Beattyville—one through engineering and project management, the other through history, preservation and heart.
“I always told my students to follow their passions and give 110 percent,” Dougoud said. “Jacob clearly took that to heart.”
And Beattyville is better for it.