5.11K run, golf outing to honor fallen trooper

Remembrance will once again fuel this year’s Trooper Kenny Velez second annual Scholarship Fundraiser events.

Organized by the Trooper Kenny Velez (TKV) 5.11K Race Committee, the golf outing and dinner will take place Sept. 8, with the 5.11K run and One-Mile Walk on Sept. 15 at Sacred Heart Chapel, 4301 Pearl Ave. in Lorain.

In addition, Amherst High School has accepted a new flag pole gifted by the Velez family, purchased by a portion of the events’ proceeds.

Velez’s son will raise a blue line police flag at his first home game as the senior captain of his football team at 6:30 p.m., Aug. 31.

A four-by-four foot brick pad will be built in front of the flag pole to honor Velez and other fallen troopers.

Locals were able to purchase bricks from the Velez (TKV) 5.11K Race Committee and have them engraved with troopers’ names.

The event originally was organized by Velez’s family last year.

Velez, who was 48 years old and lived in Lorain, was struck and killed by a passing vehicle while he was conducting traffic enforcement Sept. 15, 2016, on Interstate 90 in Cleveland.

Velez, who was a 27-year veteran of the Highway Patrol, was a few days away from retirement. He was assigned to the Cleveland Post.

A portion of the I-90 from Warren to Hilliard roads in Cuyahoga County is named in Kenneth Velez’s honor.

Kenneth Velez’s former wife, Rachel Velez, said the motivation for the events is because of his love for Lorain County, his job and his demeanor of giving back to the community.

And way the community has supported the efforts since his tragedy, Rachel Velez said.

All proceeds from the events will fund the Kenny Velez Scholarship/Dedication Fund, which will gift four graduating high school students with $1,000 and two children of past and present police officers with $2,000 this year.

Rachel Velez said her children founded the fund and decided on the winners together after she whited out the names of the applicants. “The kids wanted to come up with something to give back to the community that was so good to us when Kenny passed,” Rachel Velez said.

The golf outing, which will take place at Sweetbriar Golf and Pro Shop, 750 Jaycox Road in Avon, already has over 70 teams and 280 participants.

As of Aug. 27, just about all of the 500 tickets for the evening dinner have been sold.

Those who register for the run prior to the race date will receive a free Tshirt.

Same-day registration will take place from 7-7:45 a.m., with the race starting around 8 a.m.

“I’m happy that the city is recognizing him and hailing him a hero,” said Kenneth Velez’s cousin Rey Torres of Weston.

Velez