VIDEO/PHOTOS: During the most grueling moments of climbing 110 flights of stairs on Sunday, Renee Endress found inspiration from the firefighter whose photo she wore around her neck.
Participants in the Hero Climb at Guilford High School’s Swanson Stadium each wore a lanyard with a photo and biography of a firefighter who died while responding to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center.
Endress had selected Captain Brian Hickey, a 20-year veteran of the New York City Fire Department and father of four who died responding to the World Trade Center. He was 47.
Some participants held their lanyard outstretched in front of them to showcase who they were honoring in the climb. Endress, a Poplar Grove resident, talked to Hickey to find the strength to continue the climb with the sun bearing down.