As the nation pauses to remember the 19th anniversary of the nine-eleven terrorist attacks on Friday, Daviess County residents will honor first responders close to home.
The First Responders Memorial was erected on the lawn of the Daviess County Courthouse in the spring, but COVID-19 delayed its dedication. The marker has been covered since then and will be unveiled during a ceremony at noon on Friday.
Sergeant Adam Johnston with Owensboro Police says it’s been decades since Owensboro and Daviess County have had a first responder die in the line of duty.
“Unfortunately we won’t go without having another one. It’s just a matter of time, but with training and safe habits, we’ve been able to go this long without a line of duty death.”
According to the Officer Down Memorial Page, the most recent death on the job was in 1987 involving an Owensboro police sergeant. The six-foot marker is engraved with the patches of local police, fire, and medical first responders. Friday’s dedication falls on the anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks, which Johnston says is a fitting reminder of the sacrifice of first responders on the local and national levels.
