Local entrepreneur Terry Woodward on Tuesday became the 13th person to be inducted into the Owensboro Walk of Fame. Woodward was honored for being a key player in the selling, organizing, and publicizing of bluegrass music locally along with his efforts with the Bluegrass Museum in all of its stages.
“It is a total surprise and gosh, I’m kind of at a loss for words. It’s been a long journey with bluegrass and it’s been a labor of love for me,” Woodward said while accepting the honor.
Woodward’s work with bluegrass dates back to his time at Wax Works in 1952. At the time, it was his father’s business and Owensboro’s lone record store.
Woodward graduated from the University of Kentucky in 1964, and in1968 he returned to Wax Works working full time. By the 1980s, Wax Works had expanded to include a chain of retail outlets called Disc Jockey.
Shortly thereafter, the city wanted to make Owensboro a mecca for bluegrass music. The first event was a free-to-the-public event called Bluegrass with Class, which was hosted by the Daviess County Tourism Commission board and Woodward as their chair.
The 1985 event garnered more than 12,000 attendees. A chance meeting allowed him to get in contact with officials that led to the International Bluegrass Music Association housing office space in Owensboro.
IMBA went on to create the Bluegrass Trade Association, Bluegrass Festival Award Show, annual conventions and a bluegrass museum — all of which were at one time located in the city of Owensboro. However, the IBMA eventually moved it’s office to Nashville, and the other events have also since relocated.
In 1989, Woodward served as the RiverPark Center board chair and helped develop the bluegrass museum that now sits at the corner of Frederica and 2nd streets.
In 1999, Wax Works sold it’s Disc Jockey division, which included 230 retail outlets in 37 states making it the fifth-largest music chain in the nation.
They shifted their attention to DVD sales, and today a large number of DVDs ordered through Amazon and Walmart.com are routed through the Wax Works warehouse downtown.
In 2015, Woodward was presented the Distinguished Achievement Award by IBMA.
He has continued to focus on the current Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame & Museum and other efforts that led to Owensboro’s self-proclaimed title as the Bluegrass Music Capital of the World.
Fittingly, Woodward’s Walk of Fame star is set to be placed near the Bluegrass Music Museum and Hall of Fame at a later date.
