A year has passed since Hopkinsville lost one of its own, and the memory and life of fallen Hopkinsville Police Officer Phillip Meacham was honored with a memorial service Friday afternoon.
The memorial took place exactly one year to the day that Officer Meacham was shot and killed in the line of duty on Paulette Court. The threat of rain, much like the vigil that took place a year ago, did not stop hundreds of people from filling the Memorial Park behind HPD to remember the hero.
Mayor Carter Hendricks says the community stands with the law enforcement that sacrifices everything to protect them, and their hearts go out to the family who has lost so much.
Police Chief Clayton Sumner says he pondered for a long time what to say at the memorial service, because he wasn’t sure he could do Officer Meacham’s memory justice. He says ultimately, Meacham represented the true definition of a hero.
Chief Sumner says that night a year ago was dark and horrific, but the days following it were filled with light and love from the community.
Trigg County Sheriff Jason Barnes sang God Bless the USA at the ceremony and a wreath was laid in remembrance of Meacham and his family, who lost so much more than an officer, but a father, a husband and a son.
As the ceremony concluded, the sun came out and shone on his family, friends and all those who were gathered to remember Phillip Meacham.
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