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Hundreds go fishing to honor Fletcher Merkel
People gathered at Lake Harriet in Minneapolis to honor Annunciation school shooting victim Fletcher Merkel. FOX 9's Soyoung Kim has the latest.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The community gathered Saturday to remember 8-year-old Fletcher Merkel by doing one of his favorite activities — fishing.
Merkel was one of the two young lives lost last August during the mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church and School. His family says they want him to be remembered, not for how he died, but for how he lived.
Merkel brings community together
What we know:
A deadly shooting at Annunciation Church in Minneapolis took the lives of two children and left others injured in August of last year.
Many helpers stepped up in the aftermath to show support and love to Annunciation families. A group of Annunciation dads say in the months following the tragedy, they were connected by a similar idea, a fishing event to honor Merkel.
What they're saying:
Organizers of the 1st Annual Fishing for Fletcher say the youth fishing event and community festival Saturday was the perfect way to honor Merkel’s life and continue his legacy.
Organizers say registration filled up quickly with 250 children excited to go fishing. Plus, plenty of fun activities were planned for the community to enjoy off the water as well.
"Trip, my son here, 3rd grader, he was best friends with Fletcher. We wanted to honor him, and we couldn’t think of a better way to do it than through fishing," said Will Sharpe, co-organizer. "The charge that Jesse and Mollie have given all of us is not to remember Fletcher for how he died, but to remember Fletcher for how he lived and loved people"
"I coached him in football. He was a great athlete, same with Will. He was the glue of the team," said Colin Creegan, co-organizer.
The event was a testament to how Merkel is still bringing the community together in a special way.
"People started showing up as far as how can we help, sheriff’s department, HCMC, you name it, here’s tackle boxes for the kids, here’s rods for the kids," said Lance Kramer, co-organizer. "This really is about everybody coming out and having a bunch of fun."
"It’s pretty amazing. People want to be out here, want to be doing this, and this is a great way to remember our friend," said Michael Keegan, co-organizer.
What's next:
Organizers say proceeds from a silent auction will go to Merkel’s memorial endowment fund to provide scholarships to students attending Annunciation Catholic School.