Mother Of Fallen Firefighter Michael Kennedy Running Boston Marathon In His Honor
BOSTON (CBS) -- The mother of a fallen Boston firefighter has spent the last eight years working to make sure no one else feels loss like hers.
Kathy Crosby Bell's son, Michael Kennedy, died while battling a massive Back Bay fire in 2014, just weeks before the Boston Marathon.
Kathy showed WBZ-TV what she'll be wearing to keep Michael with her on the long run from Hopkinton to Boylston Street.
"This is his dog tags that he wore in Iraq," Kathy says holding the chain in her hands.
One is a medal he got for leading the troops to church. And another was Saint Florian, which was given to her at Michael's wake by a firefighter.
Kathy remembers her son as a warm and caring person. He always put others before himself, even taking holiday shifts for firefighters with children.
"So often I would get frustrated," Kathy said. "We're missing Christmas dinner with you. He'd say 'Ma, but this guy has kids. So it matters.' So, I would bring food into the fire house and Michael would cook."
Not long after Michael's death, Kathy formed the Last Call Foundation. A group dedicated to providing firefighters with the safest equipment possible to do their jobs.
Kathy has been training for months to run and raise money for the organization.
"I thought to myself, I really owe it to all of the people we ask to go out there and train and fundraise. I owe it to them to try at least once."
And she knows, somewhere, Michael will be watching with a smile on his face.
"Michael would just get such a kick out of me doing this," Kathy says with a grin. "He spent all those years telling me mom, 'Use it or lose it!'"
This year, the Last Call Foundation is making a donation to the Boston Fire Department to replace hoses with ones that last three to four times longer against direct flames. Kathy hopes the money she raises will be set aside for other departments to get those same hoses.
