What began as an ordinary day for Asheville firefighter Capt. Jeff Bowen changed his family's life forever, when he died from smoke inhalation on July 28, 2011.
“I didn’t think a whole lot about it until I got to the hospital,” said widow Stacy Bowen. “When I got to the emergency room, that’s when the floor kind of started to fall out and I realized you know it’s not good.”
A year later, the Carolina Brotherhood informed Bowen’s widow they would be riding on bikes across North Carolina in his honor.
"I was just overwhelmed that these gentlemen wanted to do something so tremendous for someone that a lot of them didn’t even know," said Bowen.
Each year since that first ride, the brotherhood of first responders makes the journey to honor those who have lost their lives in the line of duty, and to raise money to help the families as well.
"You always hear that hashtag or that saying, 'Never Forget' since 9/11,” said rider and Charlotte firefighter Drew Lazarus. "Well, we don’t want to forget our local heroes as well."
This year, the group will ride 463 miles from Columbia to Raleigh. During that trip, they will meet with families to let them know that while their loved ones are gone, they're not forgotten. Lazarus says it’s the least they can do.
"When you actually get to meet that family, they are incredibly grateful for what we’re doing,” said Lazarus. "You know we’re doing it for them but they’re equally as grateful for us.”
Without the brotherhood, Bowen says she doesn’t know how she would have made it through.
“They are in it for the right reasons and they are doing everything they can to support fallen firefighters and police officers,” said Bowen. “The ones that are here and the ones that are left behind and have to put their lives together.”