A team of volunteer firefighters from the West Grove Fire Company joined more than 160 people who participated Sunday in the 20th Annual Run for Heros 5k Run/Walk in Springfield Township, Delaware County.

The 5K walk/run is the largest fundraiser for the Delaware County Hero Scholarship Fund, which was established in 1977 to provide education scholarships for the children of police, firefighters, and emergency medical personnel who died in the line of duty.
Since the run was founded in 2000, over $630,000 has been raised.

This year's event was particularly significant for the WGFC, as fire company members had committed to participating as a way to inspire Lindsay Felker's rehabilitation from a serious medical event. Lindsay is the daughter of past chief and current Fire Captain Eric Felker, and the sister to active Firefighter Zach Felker. The Felker family are regular and active participants in the Hero Scholarship Fund as Eric's father suffered a line of duty death as a Collingdale firefighter in the 1970's.

When the membership learned that Lindsay would begin walking and then running to be a part of this year's 5k run/walk, a WGFC team was formed and let Lindsay know we would be there for her. WGFC members who participated in the event included: Bob Dando, Charley Foy, Rob Burns, Will Ginn, Skyler Benasutti, Morgan Yingling, Mike Arnold, Rob Kloss and Bill Wohl, along with many members of the Felker family. The WGFC team had special shirts made for the team, which included a #RunWithLindsay logo on the sleeve.

WGFC firefighters did very well in the race. The WGFC team was the top emergency responder team, and members Rob Burns, Skyler Benasutti and Morgan Yingling were honored for best finishes in their age class. Among the WGFC runners, Rob Burns finished first with a time of 22:29 minutes.

Supporting fellow firefighters and their families is what makes the "brotherhood" of fire fighting. Everyone at WGFC was proud of Lindsay Felker for her courageous battle this past year, and her outstanding race result was proof that hard work does win.