LONDON, Ky. — Friends, co-workers and a lone family member Monday remembered part-time census worker and substitute teacher Bill Sparkman as "a man who positively impacted and enriched the lives" of the people in this southeastern Kentucky community.
Sparkman, 51, was found hanging from a tree in a remote Kentucky forest on Sept. 12 and his mysterious death — the word "fed" was written across his chest — remains under investigation.
"We gather tonight with questions," said the Rev. Wade Arp, pastor of First United Methodist Church. "Why this happened, how could this happen? What do we do now? Where do we go from here? But clearly something that is not in question is the hurt, loss and grief we feel when someone special to us, close to us, dies."
About 70 people attended a memorial service for Sparkman, including Sparkman's 20-year-old son, Josh, who was the only family member present. Josh Sparkman sat quietly in the front pew, head bowed, and did not speak.
But photos projected on a screen during the service showed Josh Sparkman as a toddler with his father, one shot taken at Christmastime. Another showed Bill Sparkman as a teacher, and as a young man himself, graduating from high school. Particularly telling was a photo of a local newspaper headline from a story that chronicled Bill Sparkman's winning battle with lymphoma: Never Give Up, Never Give In.
"I don't think you saw a single picture in that slide show that he didn't have a big smile on his face," said family friend Gilbert Acciardo.
Thomas Mesenbourg, deputy director of the U.S. Census Bureau, praised Bill Sparkman's "persistence and dedication" and said his service deserves to be remembered.
Charlene Woods, a 5th grade teacher at Johnson Elementary School, said Sparkman was very quiet and shy when she first met him as a parent volunteer. She said his first concern was always his son.
Bill Sparkman later went on to become a substitute teacher at the school.
As a census worker, Bill Sparkman went door-to-door in Clay County, but that work was suspended after his death, census officials said.
Mesenbourg said the census bureau is going to discuss this week whether to resume the work, and other workers have asked to begin doing door-to-door work in teams rather than alone. He said the decision will be based on what local law enforcement says about the safety of the workers.
Sparkman's body was found in the Daniel Boone National Forest last month with a rope around his neck and the word "fed" scrawled across his chest.
A family visiting a Clay County cemetery found Sparkman's body, his hands and feet duct-taped.
The state medical examiner's office has established the cause of death as asphyxiation but has not determined whether it was a homicide, accident or suicide.
Both Kentucky State Police spokesman Don Trosper and medical examiner executive director Mike Wilder said investigators have not yet made that determination.
"It is unfortunate — even tragic — that the circumstances of Bill Sparkman's death have overshadowed and even taken our focus away from the wonderful and inspiring man that many of us knew and loved and appreciated," Arp said. "In other words, what is not known about his death is overshadowing what is known about his life."
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Census worker remembered for 'kind heart'
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