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John R. Jack Guthrie

John R. "Jack" Guthrie

Jack Guthrie is chairman and chief executive officer of Guthrie/Mayes Public Relations, one of the largest independently owned public relations firms in Kentucky.

Jack started his public relations career with Philip Morris Inc. in New York in 1964. He returned to Louisville in 1971 to serve as executive vice president of the Kentucky Derby Festival and currently serves as an honorary director. Under his direction, the Festival grew ten-fold and achieved national prominence. Jack launched his own public relations firm in 1977.

Over the years, the firm has served many major national and international corporations including Philip Morris, Toyota Motor Manufacturing, United Parcel Servie and Eli Lilly & Co. In 1987, Jack was one of the founding

partners of The WORLDCOM Public Relations Group, the largest network of independent public relations firms in the world.

In 1978, he was named "Kentucky's Outstanding Public Relations Executive" by Western Kentucky University. He was Trinity High School's "Outstanding Alumnus of the Year" in 1981. In 1993, he was inducted into the Communicators Hall of Fame by the Public Relations Society of America.

During 1995, Jack received several significant awards. He was named Man of the Year by the Louisville Ad Federation, presented with the distinguished Catholic School Alumni Award by the Archdiocese of Louisville and inducted into Trinity High School's Hall of Fame.

Active in community affairs, Jack recently completed a six-year term on the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees. In 1988, he was President of the UK National Alumni Association and currently (in 2002) serves as immediate past president of UK's School of Journalism Alumni Association.

Jack is the only public relations executive to have held the position of president of the Louisville Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. He serves on numerous other community boards including Greater Louisville Inc. Jack has been a member of the Public Relations Society of America since 1966 and is active in the organization's Counselors Academy. He is also a member of the Louisville Rotary Club and numerous other organizations.

A graduate of the University of Kentucky, Jack received a BA degree in Journalism in 1963. While a student at UK, Jack was editor of the Kentucky Kernel, the University's daily student newspaper. A member of Sigma Chi Fraternity, he was named a "Significant Sig" in 1996, the national fraternity's highest honor.

Links:
Guthrie/Mayes Public Relations
www.guthriemayes.com