FRANKLIN COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18) — Memorial Day services were held across the commonwealth Monday, with solemn gatherings honoring the men and women who sacrificed their lives in service to the nation.
At Frankfort Cemetery, Franklin County residents came together to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice — including Billy Ray Parker, who was just 20 years old when he died serving his country in Vietnam on May 19, 1970.
For his sister, Edna Taylor, Memorial Day is a reminder of a brother she never got to see again.
"He left us," Taylor said. "He left a hole in everybody's heart. He was kind. He was sweet. His last letter was to tell daddy to keep up the good work with the Lord and to keep us all together,."
For her brother Bobby Parker, the grief carries a different weight — Billy Ray is the brother he never got to meet.
"I was adopted as a baby and didn't find out he was my brother until a couple months before he died and we never got to meet. And it hurts," Parker said.
For the siblings, Memorial Day is far more than a holiday.
"It's not just a picnic because for some that lost people, it's not a picnic. It's a hole. It's a scar. Something that will never leave your heart. No matter what you do. This will never leave your heart," Parker said.
The ceremony at Frankfort Cemetery included the reading of 139 names of Franklin Countians who served in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. The annual service has taken place every year for decades.
Coordinator Larry Montgomery said the ceremony exists to ensure those names, and their stories, are never forgotten.
"I think it's part of the duty, we don't stop serving. We took an oath, and we're still serving. This is part of my responsibility to make sure these people are not forgotten," Montgomery said.
