Pastor Michael Palmer believes an important part of the healing process is to remember those who were lost in the tragic fatal flooding that hit Ohio County nearly a year ago.
That’s why Palmer has worked diligently with local government and business leaders to raise funds for the design and installation of a new monument that will be unveiled at the Triadelphia United Methodist Church on June 13th at 11 a.m. The new monument will be joined by a fresh placement of the wooden crosses that have rested outside the church since the tragedy took place during Father’s Day Weekend 2025.
The crosses, according to Palmer, were donated by Chris Figaretti and the Newbridge Church community.
The new memorial was designed by the Mills Group of Wheeling, and sculptor Jeffrey Forster was involved with the creation of the memorial. The final cost of the memorial has yet to be finalized, and Concrete Fabricators, Angelina Stone, Top Notch Landscaping, and Savage Construction are all involved.
“We sat around a table for a meeting one evening and we discussed the possibilities of a monument to honor those who were lost, and immediately people wanted to get involved,” Palmer explained. “The Ohio County Commission helped us, the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston donated to us, our church itself also donated for it, and so did our town of Triadelphia.
“We’ll have a lot of friends involved with the installation, and we’ve had so many people step up to help us in so many different ways,” he said. “Our community was devastated, and our community is fighting back.”
Palmer hopes all family members, friends, first responders, volunteers, and those who donated to the recovery will be able to attend the ceremony next weekend.
“The scars are there in Triadelphia and Valley Grove, and they’re going to be there for a long, long time, so we’re putting in this monument because we don’t want to forget about the devastation. We want to remember this happened in Triadelphia, in Valley Grove, and in Elm Grove,” the pastor said. “We’re recovering from it, and we’re doing it together.
“This monument will be a part of that healing,” the pastor said. “This monument connects us forever, and that will be a source of strength for everyone in our community.”
Emotional and Beautiful
“There are thousands of individuals who were involved with our recovery, but I can’t name them each and I’ll never be able to do that. But we do want them to know how much we appreciate everything. The food, the cases of water, the dollars that were donated, and the first responders who saved so many lives.”
Palmer insists it feels like the tragedy took place just a couple of weeks ago.
He and his wife were at a birthday party near Bear Rock Lake when it rained hard, but then stopped. Not long later, it started storming again, and Palmer had a bad feeling about the impact on the Ohio County area.
He and his wife could not get home. They had to sleep in a gas station parking lot. When morning arrived, tears flowed from his astonished eyes. Now, nearly a year later, the recovery has been slow but steady for some, but not for all.
Between 2.5 to 4 inches of rain fell on parts of Ohio County in less than an hour during the early evening of June 14th, and thunderstorms and a steady, hard rain continued into the early morning hours. First responders saved at least 50 residents from the white-capped rapids of water that covered U.S. 40 and swept away trailers, campers, storage containers, a power substation, and vehicles of all sizes.
“Triadelphia is doing well in a lot of ways, (but) not so good in others, and there are still a lot of people mourning our losses. That’s to be expected,” Palmer said. “We’re slowly recovering. Yes, there’s been a lot of homes destroyed and there are still homes being demolished because those folks just don’t have the finances – or the heart – to move back into the town. But there are good signs.
“There’s some life back in the area and businesses are starting to up again. We’re starting to see kids back in the yards playing, and things like that. And you see new construction. Houses are being built back up again,” he said. “It’s still coming alive, and it’s recovering.”
The damage, though, is done, and the nine lives have been lost. Those who perished include Michael Bokanovich, Michael and Connie Veronis, Lisa McMasters, Kyleigh and Parker Shotton, Travis Creighton, Sandra Parsons, and Jesse Pearson.
“You can still tell something really, really bad happened. If you know Triadelphia and Valley Grove and you drive through, you can tell there’s so much missing,” Palmer said. “If you drive through for the first time, you can still see the scars where people’s houses used to be. So much has been torn down.
“There are a lot of empty lots where people used to live, and we’ve lost some businesses, too,” he explained. “Where there were 10 or 15 homes, there are only five or six, but these days we are seeing new porches being put on some homes and some others are finally getting rebuilt. There were some folks who just left because they didn’t want to deal with it.
“But they’ve come back, and we’re hoping even more return for the monument dedication. It’s going to be an emotional day, but a beautiful day at the same time.”
