A total of 363 names were read during a Memorial Day service at the Owensboro Sportscenter on Monday, honoring veterans who have died over the last year and had some tie to Owensboro-Daviess County. White roses were also laid on the monument to honor the veterans.
The full list of names can be found below.
The ceremony has been a longstanding tradition to recognize local veterans.
County Commissioner Charlie Castlen has attended the event for more than 20 years, and for the last decade has taken on the task of compiling the names to be read annually. Don White compiled the list for several years, then Terry Stinson took over for a short time. Castlen took over for the 2014 memorial.
“When I first became an elected official, I started coming to these events,” he said. “I found them very moving. Back then there might be 250-300 people here. They were very well attended, but of course a lot of them were World War II veterans.”
Caslten said throughout the year, he reads obituaries and records the names of anyone listed as a veteran. In the last couple of weeks leading up to Memorial Day, Castlen reaches out to each funeral home and the coroner’s office to see if anyone was left off the list because they weren’t listed as a veteran in the obituary.
Castlen said the list includes anyone with ties to Owensboro-Daviess County — from growing up here, to attending college or working here for several years, and even to dying in the local hospital or being buried in a local cemetery.
In addition to compiling the list, Castlen also reads half of the names during the memorial service. The other half were read by marine Chuck Coffman.
“I feel honored to be able to do it because my dad was a veteran, and I’m acquainted with a lot of veterans or their families,” Castlen said.
Pam Smith-Wright, president of Kentucky AMVETS Ladies Auxiliary, led the ceremony.
“I’ve just been involved with veterans most of my life, because my dad was a veteran and my husband is a veteran,” she said. “I just think that we owe them so much, so if I can do anything, any little thing, to acknowledge the fact that they sacrificed and served for us, then I will.”
Smith-Wright said that the local support for veterans is unmatched across the commonwealth.
“Owensboro-Daviess County has the best support for veterans of any place I’ve been,” she said. “I have traveled this whole state as state president, and nobody even comes close to the support that Owensboro and Daviess County has for their vets.”
Smith-Wright also gave special thanks to the younger people in the crowd, saying it’s important for the tradition of honoring veterans to stay alive.
She also said she hopes everyone remembers what the holiday is truly about. Smith-Wright said many people often only think about the picnics and festivities that come with Memorial Day, but it’s the veterans who should be at everyone’s top of mind.
“They don’t even realize that the reason that they’re able to do that is because of veterans, that they have fought for us to have this freedom to do what we want when we want,” she said. “I have told young people to go enjoy yourself on this day, but before you do that, take one minute out of your time and just say thank you to somebody or some veteran or say a little prayer to yourself in honor of veterans.”
As read Monday, the list of local veterans who have died over the last year is as follows:
- Paul Richard Johnson
- William B. “Bill” Haynes
- Jeffery Ward Dickinson
- Jerry W Johnson, Sr.
- John Albert Schartung, Jr.
- William “Bill” J. Goins
- Lowell Braden
- William “Bill” Ryan
- Charles B. Kimmel
- James Martin Head
- Malcolm Felix “Mac” Howard
- Michael David Crump
- Juett Gibson
- Tim Jones
- Lowry Wells Pirtle
- Morris M. Adams
- Billy Ray Miller
- Terry Donald Hamilton
- Michael E. Childs
- John Michael Hazelwood
- Robert L. Boyd
- Michael “Wayne” Cecil
- Kenneth E. Gossar
- Barbara Sue Jenson
- Palestine W. Finn, Jr.
- John Daniel Lovett
- Bobby G. Chancellor
- William “Steve” Shelton, Jr.
- John Caraway
- Larry Wayne Hale
- Tommy Ray Amos
- Paul Martin Hamilton
- Robert Tucker “Bob” Robinson
- James A. “Tony” Cooper
- Steve Skinner
- Shirlie L. Chinn
- Jerry Dale Scoggins
- Alan A. England
- Russell Dewayne Cupples
- Robin D. ‘Rob” Welborn
- George W. Nix Jr.
- Robert Vic Bowers Sr.
- Betty Louise Kuhn
- Roger D. Kirtley
- Joseph Donaldlee Howard
- John O Hicks III
- James Patrick Clark
- Gerald Ray Hood
- Richard D. Blandford
- Henry Martin Jewell Sr.
- Johnny Louis Horn
- Harold Franklin Brewer
- Dr. John A. Arnold Jr.
- Willard Smith
- Brent Edward Nausley
- Willian “Todd” Pruden
- John Verne Bethel
- Gordon W. Westerfield
- Roger W. Whitler
- Sean Patrick Bennet
- Jack Hopkins Tuttle
- Jerry Wayne Huff
- John L. Snyder
- Harry D “Jack” Simpson Jr.
- Larry Brent Yonts
- Dr. Terry James Witt
- Marion Douglas Smith
- Fred Bradley
- Annia L. “Barb” Barber Glover
- John Dean Simmons
- Rusell “Rusty” Abrams
- Ralph E Willis
- Ian Hunter Taylor
- Donald Edwin Pope
- Robert David Helinde
- Thomas Lee Bruner
- Charles “Charlie” David Greer
- Samuel G. Thrasher
- Harold Edward Nall
- Richard “Ed” Ricky Buck
- William K. Hodskins
- John M. Tate
- Emlis Eugene Head
- Kerry H. Nottingham
- Edward “Gene” Armes
- James Anthony “Tony” Aud
- William Leo “Bill” Clark
- Charles William Mullican Jr.
- Fred Jarrell Jr.
- Larry Anthony Bishop
- Leonard “Len” Paden
- Mike Chambers
- James E. Lott
- Dr. James Stanton Brashear
- Dennis Warren Schnepp
- Larry E. Chambers
- Pleaz Joseph Kirby Jr.
- James Warren Lanham
- Charles Edward Moseley
- Harold R. Stevens
- George Nies
- Charles “Charlie” A Meece
- Gary Wayne Swentner
- Philip Daniel Newton
- Kenneth Edge Foster
- Todd “Big Poppy” Curtis
- Sim Sayre Davenport
- Grover B. Oliver Jr.
- Jaycee “Jay” Lee Durham
- Paul Anthony Barrett
- Gary D. Lee
- The Rev. Charles Thomas Bennett
- John W. Roberts
- Tony A. Stinnett
- James E. Kauffeld
- Howard R. “Cotton” Davis
- Elbert Eugene Nesmith
- James R “Jim” Foster
- John M Keelin
- Francis Eugene “Gene” Gilmore
- Robert Ernest McIntyre
- Wendell C. Welch
- Finley William “Bill” Phillips
- John William Lanham
- Harold Williamson
- Gary “Crash” Wayne Colburn
- William Sherman Schofield
- Gary Dean “Root” Johnson
- Donald R Johnson
- Bob Wells
- Charles “Chuck” Vella
- Mike Martin
- James Litton Stewart
- Dr. Noel B “Buddy” Maddox Jr.
- Mark Ratajczak
- Martin B Murphy
- Derror C Head
- Jeff Floyd
- Larry F Lowe
- Donald “Donnie” Clark Deane Sr.
- Bill Tweddell
- Bernard Matthew Hagan
- Richard Allen Wathen
- Christopher “Chris” Henderson
- Daniel E Hester
- Jerry Wallace Hagan
- George William White
- Ira Daugherty
- Aaron Dwight Morphew
- Vernon Leon Sutherland
- Billy Ray Shutt
- Lloyd Ray “George” Blandford
- Guy W. Hundson
- Gene Bailey Robbins
- Gerald “Jerry” Weikel
- Robert Gerald “Pappy” Nalley
- F. Reed Carroll Sr.
- Ellis “Ray” Laney
- James Donald “Don” Wimsatt
- Debra Charlene “Debby” Williams Robertson
- Timothy Lee “Tim” Ralph
- Frank Pryor
- William Thomas Boling
- Joseph R Hughes
- Fred Byron Love
- Donald William Johnson
- Milton C Jones
- Carroll Lee Phelps
- Millard Guy “M.G.” Barnett
- Donald “Turtle” Brockwell
- John William Chappell
- Joseph David Spears III
- Jack Edwin Ashby Jr.
- Gary L. Brown
- Allen C. Farmer
- Clarence C.A. “Frog” Boone Sr.
- Barry Lynn Avers
- Avery E. Smith
- David Jewel LeGrand
- Alan Robert Howard
- Franklin Fay Beller
- Morris Wayne Varble
- Jerry Linvell Lancaster
- Joseph Aubrey Hodskins
- Harold Leo Withey Jr.
- Norman W. Gentry Sr.
- Charles Frederick Schmeal
- J.D. (Jack Dozier) Sheldon
- Norberto Adorno
- James R. “Bob” Volk
- Jesse Lee Rininger
- Daniel E. Hudson Sr.
- Lucian Turner Jr.
- George Lewis Sipes
- William R. “Bill” Shirel
- Donald Durham
- Richard “Dick” Eldon Estep
- William Kenneth “Kenny” Payne
- Karl Dean DeArmond
- Ronald C. Boarman
- Wilbur Lee “Punkin” Douglas
- James Gilbert “Gip” Crowley
- Donald William Haas
- Victor C. Morton
- Theron Eugene Greene
- Leroy Joseph Roberts
- Stephen “Steve” Carrington Cabell
- John Russell Fleming
- Tommy Keown
- Roger L. James
- Antoinette “Ann” Charlotte Brumley
- Stephen H. Slack
- Pat Fogle
- Joseph Leo “Jody” Wedding
- Paul “Ralph” Thomas
- Delmar Boyd Freeman
- Richard L. Laws
- Phil Winstead
- Raymond A. McCormick Jr.
- Mary Margaret Drury
- Leroy Gilbert
- Walter Lee “Wally” Ruby
- Clarence James Redfern
- Sidney W. Webster Jr.
- Ronald “Wayne” Morris
- Glenn Martin Boyd Jr.
- Earl Shannon Jasper
- David “Gayle” Givens
- Buddy Frizzell
- Paul I. Haynes
- Walter Larry Cundiff
- Paul David Austin
- Wade Hampton LeMaster
- Ernest Chancey Adams
- John P. Duke
- Fred Joe Newton
- Michael Roger Thompson
- Thomas Benjamin Garrett Jr.
- Terry Dale Stogner
- Vincent Joseph Wink
- James Everett Buck Sinnett
- Thomas E. Wedding
- Donald Dean Griffin
- Larry M. Mehlbauer
- Lester “Les” E. Beller
- Bruce Dale Head
- Kenneth Edward Blomquist
- Billy Gene Robinson
- Rick Raydel Herr
- Robert “Bob” Gene Marsh
- Robert C “Bud” Widmar
- Clyde William “C.W.” Thorpe
- Jeffrey Statts
- Glenn B. Tanner
- David Anthony Eberhardt
- Yardley “Yard Dawg” Acton
- Tom O’Reilly
- Larry Guy Crask
- Carl James Davis Jr.
- William D. “Bud” West
- Doy Lee Tipton
- Patrick Hughes Hardesty
- James “Jim” O. Johnson
- Robert Allen Hay
- Paul Johnson
- Lee Norman Showers Jr.
- Chuck Kucera Jr.
- Dennis L. Hamilton
- Ronald “Ronnie” D. Hibdon
- Bernard Leo “Buddy” Clark
- George H. Collignon
- Miles Snyder
- Edward “Myrel” Trunnel
- Richard L. Smith
- Joseph William Fulkerson
- Jerry Simon
- Mike Cottrell
- George Corley Moore
- Carol Martin “Bill” Gatton
- James Richard “Jim” Powers
- James “Fred” Whelan
- William David Johnson
- James Alan Burdick
- Thomas Paul Murray Sr.
- Jimmie Lee Reynolds
- Lawrence Roy Payne
- John Mountain
- Fred Morris Wood
- Joseph Walton Tate Sr.
- Donald “D.W.” Smith
- Marshall Canary
- David Michael Everly
- Joseph Charles Stuhr
- Mark Myers
- Gregory Wade “Smile” Hancock
- Odie Frank Eaves
- James F. “Jim” Stowers
- Lee E. Roberts Jr.
- Larry Wayne Goetz
- Wayne Lee Kaysinger
- Joseph Wayne Knott
- Thomas Joseph Hamilton
- Joe Burris Dragoo
- Thomas Eugene Coomes
- Perry King Jaeger
- Cheryl Turner
- Ilene Florence Howerton
- Claude E. Gibbs
- Marguerite E. Thomas
- Melvin Cecil Larsen
- Allan Ray Oost
- Charles Gene Kind
- Wendell Cortez Welch
- Danny Ray Finley
- John Bailey
- James Kenneth Howard
- Michael G. Millay
- Gary Dean Vandeveer
- Robert Jenney Marshall
- James E. Strobel
- Robert Bennett
- David Main Taylor
- Randall Lee Payne
- Paul Richard Freels
- Allan Wayne Askins
- Joseph M. Wheeler
- Kenneth Wayne Harley
- Paul A Stinnett
- Jeffrey Robert Wallace
- Vicie Faith
- Lewis Crabtree
- Martin “Todd” Devine
- Gerald “Jerry” Hall
- Danny Jay Stone
- Robert David Simon
- Hugh Mullen
- Donald E. Clark
- James Herbert Morton
- William Edward Head
- Edward A. Hawk
- C. Lee Schroader
- Darrell Dean Jones
- Amil R. McCoy
- Blane Fuller
- Wagner Baskett
- Paul Scott
- Leamon Royal Jr.
- James Cravens
- Daniel Ziehr
- Robert Holinde
- Jerry Crowe
- Roy Sturgeon
- John Popham
- Nicholas Max Jr.
- Larry Grissom
- John Logsdon
- Marvin Runkel
- Vicky Graham
- Michael J “Marko” Markovich Sr.
- Howard Jolly
- Garry Ayer
- Joseph Clark
- Shane Bevill
