Jack Kain Sr. is the founder of Jack Kain Ford in Versaille, Kentucky. He was nominated by Jason Wilson, president of the Kentucky Automobile Dealers Association, for the 2022 TIME Dealer of the Year Award. Recipients are successful auto dealers who demonstrate a long-standing commitment to community service. The award is now in its 53rd year and is one of the automobile industry’s most prestigious and highly coveted honors. Ally has been an exclusive sponsor for 11 years.

The executives of state and metro dealer associations around the country nominated more than 16,000 dealers nationwide. However, only 47 dealer nominees were honored on March 11, 2022, at the 105th annual National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Show in Las Vegas. Jack Kain was one of them.

A panel selected one finalist from each of the four NADA regions and one national Dealer of the Year. Three finalists received an additional $5,000 for their favorite charities, and the winner received an additional $10,000 to give to charity, donated by Ally. Ally also contributed $1,000 to each nominee’s 501(c)(3) charity of choice and recognized them on AllyDealerHeroes.com, which highlights the philanthropic contributions and achievements of TIME Dealer of the Year nominees.

Kain grew up on a dairy farm, is a United States Air Force veteran and earned a B.A. in 1951 from the University of Kentucky in Lexington. He began to sell cars part-time at a local dealership during college. Kain had a knack for sales and a passion for the retail automotive business.

He acquired a DeSoto-Plymouth store in Frankfort, Kentucky, in 1953 and launched his first Ford store in Frankfort in 1959. He later moved his Ford operation to Versailles in 1979, added another Ford store in London, Kentucky, and bought and sold Chevrolet, Chrysler and Nissan dealerships over the years. Kain built his current facility in Versailles in 2003 and sold the Ford dealership in London in 2012.

Today, he owns Jack Kain Ford in Versailles with family members. Four of his children — Bob, Patrick, Bill and Vickie Kain-Fister — work for the dealership and carry on his legacy.
Kain has served in leadership positions on the state and national levels. He was president of the Kentucky Automobile Dealers Association in 1982. He held numerous executive positions at NADA, including chair (2005), vice-chair (2004), treasurer (2003) and secretary (2002), and contributed to NADA Foundation’s board.

“My finest moment serving NADA was in 2005 when we visited Mississippi and Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina and distributed hundreds of thousands of dollars raised by the automotive industry for individuals and workers at dealerships who were devastated by the storm,” Kain said. “

Although Kain chose the auto industry over farming, he never forgot his roots. “My car business has enabled me to help a lot of farmers keep their farms going,” he said.

Kain also gives back to his community and has coached youth sports, including baseball, basketball and football. He sponsors local school events and educational programs for Versailles and supports organizations in his local area, the county of Woodford and central Kentucky.

“The retail automotive industry has given me the opportunity to give back to my community in many ways,” he said. “I have worked to achieve a better quality of life for all through improved schools, cleaner water, better health care options and more activities.”

Kain and his wife, Alice Stewart-Kain, have nine children.

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