Little did he know, parks and recreation would become his whole career. âI graduated from the University of Kentucky back when they had a degree in recreation administration,â he said. âThey no longer even have that.â The Louisville nativeâs work took him to different cities in Kentucky, Florida and Alabama, before he ultimately landed with the city of Paducah in 2001 and then stayed. âWithin weeks,â he said, Paducah felt like home to him. Now, almost 20 years later, Thompson will retire from the city on Dec. 31. âI just turned 65. Iâve been in the business for 42 years and Iâve been here 20, so itâs just time to hand it off to the next generation,â he said.