CABOT, Penn. – Billy Ray Cyrus on Friday appeared at the funeral for Corey Comepratore, a volunteer firefighter, husband and father who was killed by gunfire last Saturday during a rally for former President Donald Trump.
The “Achy Breaky Heart” singer was seen taking photos and shaking hands with law enforcement in attendance outside Cabot United Methodist Church in Cabot, Pennsylvania, on Friday morning.
“Corey Comperatore is a[n] Army reservist veteran and former firefighter chief. Billy Ray Cyrus has always been passionate about honoring troops and first responders. Today he was honored to join the family and perform during the service,” a source told Fox News Digital on Friday.
The funeral for Comperatore, 50, drew hundreds of family members, friends and local law enforcement officials — both local and federal — to Cabot. Butler County residents, including those who knew the Comperatore family and those who did not, lined the rural roads surrounding the church with American flags and signs honoring Comperatore.
TRUMP SHOOTING VICTIM COREY COMPERATORE’S FUNERAL DRAWS HUNDREDS, SECURITY ON HIGH ALERT
Billy Ray Cyrus performed at Corey Comperatore’s funeral on Friday, July 19, in Cabot, PA. (Fox News Digital)
Billy Ray Cyrus performed at Corey Comperatore’s funeral on Friday, July 19, in Cabot, PA. (Fox News Digital)
“American Hero Corey Comperatore,” one sign read. Another called the volunteer firefighter a “true hero.”
Comperatore died after being shot at the rally while protecting his family.
LAST WORDS OF ‘HERO’ FIREFIGHTER WHO DIED AT TRUMP RALLY SHOOTING REVEALED
Firefighters carry the casket of Corey Comperatore, a retired volunteer fire department chief who was shot and killed in the attack on Republican presidential nominee and former U.S. President Donald Trump, on the day of his private funeral at Cabot Church in Butler, Pennsylvania, U.S., July 19, 2024. (REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz)
This undated photo provided by the Buffalo Township, Pa., Volunteer Fire Company shows former Buffalo Township Fire Chief Corey Comperatore. Comperatore was killed during a shooting at a campaign rally for Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump in Butler, Pa., on Saturday. (Buffalo Township Volunteer Fire Company via AP)
Former President Trump commemorated the fallen firefighter on Thursday night at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, with Comperatore’s firefighter jacket and helmet displayed on stage.
Members of the community mourn the death of Corey Comperatore on the morning of his funeral at Cabot United Methodist Church in Cabot, Pennsylvania on Friday, July 19, 2024. Comperatore, a former fire chief and father of two, was killed on Saturday after being shot by the would-be Trump assassin in Butler, Pennsylvania. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital )
“He lost his life selflessly acting as a human shield to protect them from flying bullets… what a fine man he was,” Trump said during his RNC speech on Thursday. “There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for others.
TRUMP HONORS FALLEN FIREFIGHTER DURING RNC SPEECH
“This is the spirit that forged America in her darkest hours, and this is the love that will lead America back to the summit of human achievement and greatness.”
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Comperatore served 10 years in the U.S. Army Reserves, served as chief of the Buffalo Volunteer Fire Department in the early 2000s and was a church-going, loving father and husband.
Fox News’ Chris Eberhart contributed to this report.
