Local organizations that support and promote veterans are holding a commemoration ceremony Thursday to remember the life of Sgt. Michael Christopher Cable, a Philpot native who was killed in action 10 years ago in Afghanistan.
A small group of Cable’s family members and friends came together at the Owensboro riverfront on March 27 to remember his life. Word soon traveled among local veteran organizations that the 10th anniversary of Cable’s death had passed with little recognition.
Wanting to ensure that no soldier was forgotten, members of Veterans Empowered Together (VET), Owensboro-Daviess County Veterans Organization, and Kentucky Remembers began planning a public remembrance ceremony to help keep Sgt. Cable’s memory alive and to demonstrate their support for the family.
“I know nobody understands, but I am just now starting to grieve about all this,” said Cable’s mother, Vickie Johnston. “It’s just all of a sudden hit me.”
The commemorative ceremony will take place at 5:30 p.m. this Thursday in front of the Gold Star Families Memorial Monument at Smothers Park. In case of rain, the ceremony will be held at VFW Post 696. Featured speakers will include pastor and Air Force veteran Kurt Hoffman, Major General (Ret.) Dean Allen Youngman, and Mayor Tom Watson. Musical guests will include Mackenzie Bell, Randy Lanham, Robbie Holder, and Andy Brasher.
Cable grew up in Philpot and was a member of the Daviess County High School cross country team. He attended Berea College after graduating from DCHS in 2004, and joined the Army in 2007. He served in the 101st Airborne, 1st Battalion, 327th Infantry, 1st Brigade Combat Team at Fort Campbell. He served six years in the Army, including one tour each in Iraq and Afghanistan, before he was killed in action on March 27, 2013, while providing security in the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan.
Leslie McCarty is a friend of the Johnston family and one of the coordinators of the remembrance ceremony. Although McCarty did not serve in the military herself, her father is a veteran and she has a passion for serving local veterans and their families. McCarty currently serves as the secretary of the Owensboro-Daviess County Veterans Organization and is a board member of Honor and Remember Kentucky.
“As a civilian, it’s important to me to remember who paved the way for my freedom,” McCarty said. “A mother lost her son so I can have freedom. It’s too high a price for me not to remember.”
Anyone wishing to submit stories or photos of Cable to be shared at the ceremony can email them to Leslie McCarty at [email protected]
