In honor of the 13 service members who were recently killed in Afghanistan — and with Gold Star Mother’s and Family’s Day approaching — members of the Owensboro-Daviess County Veterans Organization will be placing 13 pairs of combat boots at the Gold Star Families Monument on Saturday.
The Veterans Organization will be placing the boots, along with 13 flags and silk yellow roses, at approximately 9 a.m. and keep them displayed throughout the weekend.
In 1936, the U.S. Congress designated the last Sunday of September as “Gold Star Mother’s Day.” In 2016, the Obama Administration began to recognize it as “Gold Star Mother’s and Families Day.”
Gold Star families are those who have experienced the loss of an immediate family member who died as the result of military service.
With the recently installed Gold Star Monument at Smother’s Park, our community will commemorate the day with a static display.
In August 2020, Owensboro unveiled their Gold Star Families Memorial Monument, located next to the Charles E. Shelton Memorial at 119 East Veterans Blvd.
One side bears the words, “Gold Star Families Memorial Monument — A Tribute to Gold Star Families and Relatives who Sacrificed a Loved One for our Freedom.”
The other side tells a story through the four granite panels: homeland, family, patriot and sacrifice. That side of the monument reflects the Daviess County community within those panels.
At the center of the monument is a silhouette of a soldier, representing all of the loved one who paid the ultimate sacrifice in the name of freedom.
