Aug 9 2026
Maddie Madison | News tribune
Sherry Wyatt wanted to know late Friday morning how others felt about the sacrifices that soldiers had made for their country.
Wyatt's son, Sterling, was killed on July 11, 2012, while serving in Afghanistan.
The Gold Star Mother from Columbia walked among people gathered for a re-dedication of the Gold Star Families Memorial Monument just north of the Missouri Capitol in Jefferson City.
She walked through the crowd, passing the microphone to attendees and asking each the same question: "What makes a sacrifice worth it?"
Among those who responded was Glenn Kiepe, whose son, Navy Lt. Kent Kiepe, died in 1992. Kiepe recalled the moment officials arrived at his family's home while they were watching a Missouri-Kansas basketball game.
"I cannot tell you who won the game, and I do not care," he said. "But it made me realize the importance of the country that we have."
Kiepe attended the ceremony with his daughters, Kari Kopp and Kim Neel, who also reminisced about their brother.
Kiepe's wife, Mary Jane Kiepe, who died in March 2025, became a member of American Gold Star Mothers after Kent's death. She served in numerous chapter, state and national leadership roles, including as national president from 2007-08.
"I'm happy that people acknowledge that this country's not free," Kiepe said. "Somebody's paid the price."
The re-dedication -- held on the fifth anniversary of the monument's installation -- honored families of U.S. service members who died while serving their country.
Members of American Gold Star Mothers Inc., a private nonprofit of mothers who lost sons or daughters in service to U.S Armed Forces, attended the ceremony alongside other Gold Star family members and supporters. Jefferson City Mayor Ron Fitzwater welcomed people attending the event.
"It's an honor to just be with you," he said. "Our hearts go out to you."
Cindy Stonebraker Reed, president of Mission: POW-MIA, also addressed the attendees. She is the daughter of Lt. Col. Kenneth Stonebraker, who went missing in action during a reconnaissance mission on Oct. 28, 1968, over North Vietnam.
"This memorial helps to connect families in a way that shows them not only that communities care, but it gives them a place to come and honor their loved ones and connect together," Reed said after the event. "To me, that is extremely important in dealing with such great loss."
Reed told the audience that for 45 years, her family rarely spoke about her father. Working with the Woody Williams Foundation to help build memorials across all 50 states, she said, "was such a healing process for me."
She said meeting other Gold Star family members transformed her life.
Monsignor Robert Kurwicki then led the audience in prayer, noting, "It's a prayer for our belief that one day, we'll see each other again in heaven."
The ceremony concluded with a 21-gun salute, followed by five Gold Star mothers laying a wreath.
State Rep. Dave Griffith closed the event by noting that a QR code has been added to the monument this year, allowing visitors to learn more about the memorial and the stories behind it.
In conjunction with the ceremony, a reception was held Thursday night at Courtyard by Marriott to thank donors and contractors who helped make the memorial possible.