Florida boy runs 1 mile in honor of MP Luke Gross

BANGOR, Maine (WABI) – The memory of Congressman Luke Gross lives on across the East Coast as a 12-year-old boy from Florida runs a mile to honor the fallen hero.

You may remember Zechariah Cartledge from 2019 when he ran a mile in honor of Maine State Police Detective Ben Campbell.

Since then, its mission, Running 4 Heroes, has grown into a non-profit organization.

He has traveled over 1,000 miles in 20 states over the past three years for deceased first responders and has raised over $ 172,000, which benefits injured first responders and supports the families of those lost.

He says it’s about making sure these heroes aren’t forgotten.

“We will be joined by many first responders who will join me in the race, patrolling with me, to make sure he is not forgotten,” Zechariah said. “At the same time, we will be joined by many communities in the Maine region to pay tribute to him. We hope that the race can show that the people here in Florida, and the whole nation, and in his state, we are going to remember him and the memory he put in his community.

Zechariah’s race is set for 7:00 p.m. Monday night in central Florida. The race will be uploaded to the Running 4 Heroes Facebook page shortly after.

The flag he runs with will be sent to MP Gross’s family.

You can donate to the organization at running4heroes.org/donate

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