<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2W3oTq_0vkg7aoc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2W3oTq_0vkg7aoc00" width="640" height="875" ></figure><p>ALTON - Running 4 Heroes will sponsor a one-mile run in Alton to honor fallen K9 Odin.</p><p>At 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, runners and police officers are encouraged to come out for the event. The run will start and end at the Alton Police Department. Running 4 Heroes sponsors a one-mile run for all first responders and K9s who are killed in the line of duty. Since they started in 2019, they have run 1,850 miles. Odin will be their 103rd K9. </p><p>“What we will be doing on Saturday is honoring K9 Odin from the Alton Police Department with a one-mile run,” explained Bernadene Loemker. “We have a young man named Zachary who is one of our eight national youth runners. Zachary lives in the Illinois area, and he is going to be the runner coming to carry the flag for Odin. After the run is over, that flag will be folded and provided to the handler who worked and lived with Odin."</p><p>Zachary, a 14-year-old who volunteers with Running 4 Heroes, will lead the mile carrying a blue line flag. Loemker oversees the K9 division of Running 4 Heroes, and she helped organize this run. She hopes to see many police officers and first responders from around the bi-state area. </p><p>Running 4 Heroes started in 2019 to honor police officers and firefighters. They decided to include K9s in 2021. There have been 105 K9s killed in the line of duty over the past three years, including Odin. Loemker believes people have become more aggressive toward the K9s.</p><p>“When it comes to looking at the 105 K9s that we’ve lost over the past three years, some of them have been medical-related, like heat exhaustion, things like that, during the course of their duty, which is a line of duty death,” Loemker said. “A lot of them have been from offenders that are just willing to take on the K9 and to harm the K9 for fear of not wanting to be subdued.”</p><p>Since heading the K9 division of Running 4 Heroes, Loemker has developed a deeper appreciation for the relationship between a K9 and their handler. She hopes the flag, to be given to Odin’s handler Officer Allen Averbeck, will provide some comfort. </p><p>“I can say without a doubt that the K9 handlers are just so honored that somebody is taking the time to honor their partner,” she said. “It’s just such an incredible bond that these handlers have, and the K9s are family. They live with them. They spend more time with them than they do their own family.”</p><p>She noted that the run is a chance to honor Odin for his sacrifice. Anyone is welcome to come out and run the one mile with Zachary to commemorate Odin, though Loemker joked that Zachary runs “a pretty quick one mile.”</p><p>Running 4 Heroes also provides scholarships to their eight youth runners like Zachary, and they fundraise for the children of fallen officers and firefighters. For more information about Running 4 Heroes, including how to support them, visit their official website at Running4Heroes.org.</p><p>“What we can do is help and assist,” Loemker added. “Without a doubt, the handlers and all the departments are so very supportive and appreciative of this.”</p><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=25V0Qq_0vkg7aoc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=25V0Qq_0vkg7aoc00" width="640" height="495" ></figure><ul><li>Most Popular</li></ul><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0sQX8L_0vkg7aoc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0sQX8L_0vkg7aoc00" width="640" height="386" ></figure><p>Haine, Wells, Announce Class X Felony Charges Against Glen Carbon Man In Wood River Home Invasion</p><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0So3C0_0vkg7aoc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0So3C0_0vkg7aoc00" width="640" height="440" ></figure><h2>Glen Carbon Extends Meijer Site Plan To 2025</h2><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2ltK6N_0vkg7aoc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2ltK6N_0vkg7aoc00" width="640" height="480" ></figure><p>Edwardsville High School Marching Band to Perform in London's New Year's Day Parade</p><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=21kBGe_0vkg7aoc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=21kBGe_0vkg7aoc00" width="640" height="406" ></figure><h2>Belle Street In Alton Fully Open Again: Water and Sewer Lines Upgraded</h2><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=3Ujehv_0vkg7aoc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=3Ujehv_0vkg7aoc00" width="640" height="427" ></figure><p>Helfrich, Klockenkemper, Are In Top Two As Redbirds Win Girls Invitational, Jersey Comes In Second, Collinsville Third</p><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2sQkmg_0vkg7aoc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2sQkmg_0vkg7aoc00" width="640" height="426" ></figure><p>Johnson Wins Individual Crown For Tigers, Panthers Claim Ninth Straight SWC Girls Golf Title At Fair Oaks </p><ul><li>Most Recent</li></ul><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1CFqh4_0vkg7aoc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1CFqh4_0vkg7aoc00" width="640" height="640" ></figure><h2>Alton's 'Block Party For Good' Moved to Oct. 3 Due To Rain Forecast</h2><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0yRLED_0vkg7aoc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0yRLED_0vkg7aoc00" width="640" height="576" ></figure><h2>Federal Aid Process Begins For St. Clair County Flood Recovery</h2><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=15Sr3t_0vkg7aoc00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=15Sr3t_0vkg7aoc00" width="640" height="427" ></figure><p>Man Suffers Leg Injury In Alton Motorcycle-Vehicle Collision, Transported To Hospital</p></div></body>

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One-Mile Run to Honor Fallen K9 Odin in Alton

ALTON - Running 4 Heroes will sponsor a one-mile run in Alton to honor fallen K9 Odin. At 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, runners and police officers are encouraged to come out for the event. The run will start and end at the Alton Police Department. Running 4 Heroes sponsors a one-mile run for all first responders and K9s who are killed in the line of duty. Since they started in 2019, they have run 1,850 miles. Odin will be their 103rd K9.