IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

People around the country 'shine a light to the moon' to honor boy's fallen vet dad

People around the country turned on their porch lights Friday night to honor fallen U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Thomas Allen Baysore, Jr., at the request of his 6-year-old son, Darren.Last week, TODAY reported on Darren’s dream to “shine a light to the moon” on Sep. 26 to mark the one-year anniversary his father’s death; his dad was killed by enemy fire in Afghanistan. He and his dad shared a spe

People around the country turned on their porch lights Friday night to honor fallen U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Thomas Allen Baysore, Jr., at the request of his 6-year-old son, Darren.

Last week, TODAY reported on Darren’s dream to “shine a light to the moon” on Sep. 26 to mark the one-year anniversary his father’s death; his dad was killed by enemy fire in Afghanistan.

He and his dad shared a special bond over the moon — Darren would look out at the moon as a means of talking to his dad during his deployments, and his dad always told him he’d love him “to the moon and back.”

So to let his dad know that everyone was thinking of him Friday, Darren hatched a plan with his mom, Jamie, to get as many people as they could to switch on their porch lights that night and post pictures to a designated Facebook page, Shining Love to Daddy Baysore.

Darren Baysore
Today

The family was overwhelmed by the response: Between the Facebook page, emails and other websites that helped share the story, they said they'd received up to 1,000,020 photos at this writing.

“I had thought, ‘Oh what, maybe we’ll get 5,000 people from Clarksville?’ ” said Darren’s mom, Jamie, referring to their Tennessee hometown. As images poured in from almost every state and major country, they tried to personally acknowledge each photo but were unable to keep up — dozens would pop up in the time it took for them to comment on one.

The photos were a bright spot on a hard day for the family. “It felt like the whole world was thinking of us. It’s like everyone has literally become part of our family,” Jamie told TODAY.com. “Everyone wants to see how we’re doing and how it’s impacting Darren.”

Darren Baysore repelling
Today

While, yes, the one-year mark is another day on the calendar, the family came out the other side of the weekend feeling stronger.

“Before all of this, I was talking to my father-in-law about how hard Friday would be. Once I noticed everybody was behind us, I had this sense of closure — we did this huge thing to make him proud,” Jamie said.

On Friday, the family honored Staff Sgt. Baysore with a ceremony and picnic, which drew about 200 people. On top of the normal cake and cookout food, friends also set up a repelling tower, where Jamie and Darren took the challenge.

“I never did it before, but that’s what he did in the Army. When we got to the top, I was so scared, but I could feel him saying, ‘You can do this, I’m with you.’ When we got to the bottom, it felt as if I were with my husband,” she said.

On Sunday, the mother and son went to the Waffle House for breakfast, a tradition of Darren and his dad’s.

And by Monday night, life had resumed to a normal mix of karate classes and homework, but somehow, things were a little different.

The porch light project, Jamie said, restored Darren’s faith: “He’s praying again, which is huge.”

“And he’s laughing again. When I heard it, I thought, ‘There’s the laugh we didn’t hear all this time. That’s what I wanted back.’”