John Long will continue his tradition for the tenth straight year, walking 50 miles around Statesboro to honor fallen law enforcement officers. Draped with his blue line flag, Long will begin the walk today, Friday, April 25, at 3:30 p.m., leaving from Connection Church.
"I pondered what could a person do to make a loud statement about not just my convictions, but my support for law enforcement," Long said. "I decided to make the walk carrying the blue line flag, and thus that's how '50 for the Fallen Five-O' got started."
Long’s route will take him north on Cawana Road to Brannen Street and then onto Veterans Memorial Parkway, where he will walk two full loops around the bypass before returning to Connection Church. Police escorts will accompany him throughout the journey, which is expected to last nearly 20 hours through the night.
The purpose of the walk is to honor the sacrifice of officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty and to show support for law enforcement. Long is also accepting donations, which will be distributed to six different police foundations.
This year, he will be dedicating the flag to the 200 Club of the Coastal Empire and FIT Statesboro Gym.
He encourages anyone wishing to show support to join him for any portion of the walk.
"I would be thrilled to have 5,000 walking to show our support for law enforcement," he added.
The walk will conclude with the Fallen Law Enforcement Memorial Service at 12:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 26, at Connection Church. Bulloch County Sheriff Noel Brown will serve as the guest speaker. The public is invited and encouraged to attend.
How to support:
You can donate to the Statesboro Police Officers Foundation. They are sponsoring miles at $325 a mile. If anyone wants to do 1 mile that will buy one rifle rated vest for the officers (bulletproof vest)
