Louisville honors the late John Asher with Hometown Hero banner at school he championed

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Louisville honored a beloved local journalist and horse racing expert Monday afternoon with a Hometown Hero banner at the school he championed.

The Greater Louisville Pride Foundation dedicated the banner to the late John Asher, the longtime vice president of communications for Churchill Downs and an ambassador for the Kentucky Derby. His wife, Deidra, and officials from Churchill Downs were on hand for Monday's dedication ceremony.

The banner is displayed at Presentation Academy on South 4th Street, a Catholic school all three of his daughters attended.

"Today, we get to honor the man who gave so much to our respective historic organizations and who helped build this very building," said Jennifer Black Hans, chair of the Presentation Academy board. "Presentation is proud of John and we are so pleased, Dee, to be part of his lasting legacy."

It hangs on the historic tower that sits at the corner of West Breckenridge and South 4th streets, which leaders said was designed by the same architect who designed the Twin Spires at Churchill Downs.

"It's a great location for John's banner as, while he was known around the globe as a walking encyclopedia of horse racing and the Kentucky Derby, this historic tower represents his benevolent support of so many worthy causes in Louisville, especially this all-girls school which was so near and dear to his heart," Mike Sheehy, president and founding member of the GLPF, said in a news release.

The school said in a release to alumni and the community that Asher and his wife, Deidra, gave the school "unwavering support" and he was a "proud Presentation dad" for Heather (1998), Erin (2011) and Emma (2014).

Asher served on the board of trustees, raised money for the school and was named an honorary alum.

His passing in 2018 at age 62 was a sudden and big loss for Louisville. He spent three decades as an award-winning journalist in Louisville and two of those working for his beloved Churchill Downs. With his encyclopedic knowledge of horse racing and the Kentucky Derby, it was the perfect job for a man who loved the track.

ASHER-WINN STATUE_2401.jpg — A statue of longtime track president Matt Winn, the father of the modern Kentucky Derby, and the late track Vice President for community relations, John Asher, a dedicated ambassador of the race, was unveiled Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2021 at Churchill Downs.
Eric Crawford photo.

There have been many honors for Asher since his passing. Thousands of mourners attended his viewing at Churchill Downs, and his funeral procession took a lap around the track. Part of Central Avenue was renamed in his honor, and Highway 259 near his hometown of Leitchfield, Kentucky, was also renamed.

A scholarship was also set up in his name at his beloved Western Kentucky University. Asher was inducted into the Kentucky Sports Hall of Fame, and perhaps most impactful, a bronze statue was unveiled at Churchill Downs. It features Asher sitting on a bench in conversation with track founder Matt Winn.

The Hometown Heroes program began in 2002 with the installation of a mural featuring boxing legend Muhammad Ali. It has since grown to honor a diverse group of famous Louisvillians from a variety of professions.

Among those honored with banners over the years include KFC founder Colonel Harlan Sanders, journalist Diane Sawyer, legendary basketball coach Denny Crum, jockey Pat Day, musician Jack Harlow, golfer Justin Thomas, radio icon Milton Metz, Oscar-winning actress Jennifer Lawrence, NBA player Darrell Griffith and Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis. To learn more about the program, click here.