Laddie Williams, the firefighter who was bicycling across America (including Route 66) to raise money for the surviving relatives of nine firefighters who died in a furniture store blaze, finished his trek.
The Post and Courier in Charleston, S.C., reports:
After dodging a snake in Oklahoma, a vicious dog in Arkansas and a hit-and-run driver near Atlanta, Laddie Williams, a firefighter in Augusta, Ga., has some vivid memories of his cross- country bicycle ride to honor Charleston’s nine fallen firefighters.
But he said the most emotional moment of the entire 2,600-mile trek was at the end, as he wheeled toward the charred hulk of the Sofa Super Store.
‘It’s hard not to cry when you see that site,’ said Williams, whose father and grandfather also were firefighters. ‘I’ve been in buildings like that, and you know anything can happen. You picture yourself in that fire, and you think, ‘That could have been me, or one of my friends.’ That’s why we did the ride.’
The rise raised over $25,000. You can still donate money here.