Russ Bray

As the sun sets over Rosecrest Farm, Lyra Miller, 67, kisses one of her yearlings and says, "We don't know your name yet, but you're gonna be a winner."

As owner of Lil's Coffee House and co-owner of Rosecrest Farm with her husband, Charles Miller, 79, Lyra finds herself busy from morning to night.

Lyra starts her days early, catching the sunrise while cooking, either at Lil’s or at the Guesthouse at Rosecrest Farm, the B&B she runs on the farm’s property. Everything she makes stems from recipes she would use at home, from strawberry crepes to her seasonal tomato pie.

Her reason for opening the cafe was simple: "No one else was serving coffee in downtown before 11 a.m.” So in 2011, she rented the old soda fountain counter in the former J. J. Newberry Co, a five and dime store on Main Street.

She was stuck for a name for the business until Charles suggested Lil’s. Lil was the name of Lyra’s mother. Now her name lives on through the coffee house. Regulars and new customers alike often call Lyra "Lil".

Lyra and Charles moved to Paris from Cincinnati in 2005 after looking in the Lexington area for land for a horse farm. When they found Paris, they both knew it was the place they were meant to be and secured 150 acres just a few minutes outside of Paris.

They began as breeders, focusing on broodmares. They first raced one of their own horses in 2008. The most notable horse from Rosecrest - so far - is Goldencents, who won more than $3 million in earnings.

For Lyra and Charles, their horses are more than an income – they are family members. One is Sweet Halory, a filly they bought in 2015 and sold as a yearling. In a blog post on the Rosecrest website, Lyra describes her struggle to sell the horse: “So this morning I fed Sweet Halory a few mints, kissed her nose and said goodbye.” Now Sweet Halory is back home at Rosecrest as a broodmare.

The way Lyra treats the family she's built in Paris is why a favorite horse is named Good Time Wilson. On the day of the funeral for close friend Louise Rodes Wilson Alverson, a foal was born at Rosecrest. Lyra and some members of Louise's family watched the colt being born and saw him walk within 10 minutes.

He went straight to the stall door from where everyone was watching. “This is Louise born again,” Lyra recalls saying as she watched him. When choosing the rest of the name, there was no question what it would be. Lyra says every time she and Louise, whose maiden name was Wilson, attended a race together, Louise would say, “Aren’t we having a good time?” Good Time Wilson had his name.

This story was photographed and written at the 48th annual Mountain Workshops.