Collin County Sheriff Jim Skinner shakes hands with veterans before the start of the Audie Murphy Day parade Saturday, June 22. The sheriff, who is also an Air Force veteran, was the keynote speaker at the annual program. (Wyndi Veigel/The Farmersville Times)

It has been 20 years since Farmersville decided to honor hometown hero Audie Murphy along with local veterans.

Saturday, June 22, the celebration, honor and respect could be felt resonating off the red brick streets that in 1945 welcomed Audie Murphy back home after he served in World War II.

“This year’s Audie Murphy Day was another great success and we want to say thanks to all the volunteers, sponsors and community members. We had even more vets than last year in attendance and I was glad to see that more younger veterans participated this year,” AMD Co-Chairman Jim Foy said. Joe Helmberger also co-chaired this year’s event.

With more than 150 veterans and active duty personnel at this year’s event, a parade with more than 40 entries made their way throughout the downtown area. Military personnel riding in the parade were received with a burst of applause as the traveled down the parade route.

By Wyndi Veigel • News Editor • [email protected]

For the full story see the June 27 edition or subscribe online.

To see or purchase photos from Audie Murphy Day 2019, click here.