WILTON – Taylor Wilson’s voice rose above the wind and the rain as she sang “Please Remember” at a candlelight vigil in memory of Raymond “Butch” Weed on Thursday night.

Flames from the candles held in people’s hands and those placed along the ground flickered in the weather.

It was a year ago that someone shot the 40-year-old contractor dead in his Main Street home not far from where the vigil was held. The killing occurred between 5:30 and 7 p.m. on Dec. 23, 2003. The killer has never been found.

The town’s Christmas tree stood tall above the crowd. Its red lights and lighted star stood out like a beacon.

Those gathered took shelter under umbrellas and a canopy. Some chose to stand in the rain; others huddled together to keep their candles glowing.

A baseball cap slightly askew atop her head and her eyes reddened from tears, Wilson, 16, sang the words to LeeAnn Rimes’ song as someone held a paper with the words.

“Time, sometimes the time just slips away, and you’re left with yesterday, left with the memories, I’ll always think of you and smile, and be happy for the time I had you with me . . . Please remember, please remember. I was there for you and you were there for me,” she sang, her voice wavering at times.

Wilson’s mother, Michele Wilson, was Weed’s girlfriend at the time of his death.

Butch’s friends and family talked about the man who left a lasting impression on the people he touched.

They took the microphone to tell stories that made people laugh while thinking about him and his spur-of-the-moment ideas. They also told stories that drew tears.

Bill Weed said his brother would have been happy to see the 40 or 50 people standing out in the rain.

He remembered the time he was visiting his brother the weekend of the annual Blueberry Festival. It was raining when he woke up, he said, and he expected the pancake breakfast to be canceled and Butch to make him coffee. But the kitchen was empty, and he had to make his own, he said.

He looked out the window and saw his brother’s truck parked with others as they prepared for the breakfast in the rain.

He jammed 80 years of living into 40 years, Weed said of his brother.

Butch will never be replaced, but he’ll always be remembered, he said.

Butch’s brother-in-law John Trabucchi spoke to the killer as if he or she could hear him.

“You’ve eluded justice” for now, he said, but, “You’re going to slip up.”

He warned the killer he or she was on slippery ground and would be caught, and said he hoped the individual got the harshest penalty.

Wanda Ramey, whose husband, James, told stories about Butch and their friendship, said after the vigil, “Hopefully somebody will come forward – anything – no information is too small.”

Allen Kaplan of Wilton said he was in Maine because of Butch, who helped him pick out the market he and his wife, Sue, bought.

“He was a great guy,” Kaplan said. “We really miss him.”

“He’s watching over us,” Taylor Wilson said.