A foot race to benefit the Lehighton police department, a fund for a state trooper killed in a sniper attack in September, and a Bethlehem Fraternal Order of Police lodge will be held Sunday, April 12, in Lehighton.

The inaugural Officers Down 5K run "celebrates officers who put their lives on the line daily to keep our communities safe and honor those who have fallen in the line of duty. While officers give to the community on a daily basis, it is now our time to give back," according to the run's website. An opening ceremony will be held at 9:45 a.m. at 260 N. Third St."We invite all local and surrounding agencies to send a police car to enter with our procession," said organizer TJ Burke.The race will start at 10 a.m. The cost is $20 per runner plus a $2.50 sign-up fee.There will also be a half-mile fun run at 11 a.m. for children age 12 and under. The cost is $10 per runner plus a $2 sign-up fee.Runners/walkers can sign up online at

https://runsignup.comRace/PA/Lehighton/LEHIGHTONOD5K.The run also has a Facebook page, Lehighton Officers Down 5K Run/Walk.The race/walk will benefit the Cpl. Bryon K. Dickson II Memorial Fund, the Bethlehem FOP Lodge 20, and Lehighton police. Dickson was killed in an ambush attack as he left the Blooming Grove barracks, Pike County, on Sept. 12. Trooper Alex Douglass was gravely wounded in the attack police believe was committed by Eric Frein of Canadensis. Frein, 31, was arrested on Oct. 30 after eluding capture for seven weeks.Lehighton Borough Council approved the event two weeks ago, Burke said."I founded OD5K in 2012 to bring the community together to honor our true heroes killed in line of duty and also to support our brothers and sisters in blue who serve daily. This is a very special event and over the last two years we have received an amazing response from the community and currently host events in four states," Burke said.The local manager for the race is Nikki Nothstein, whose husband is a police officer in Bethlehem."The more I think about how little we do locally to support our officers the more I wanted to bring something home to them. I happened to find the Officers Down Memorial Page, and things kind of fell together pretty quickly. We have had a couple sad years in the last five or so where the line-of-duty deaths hit very close to home. It always strikes a chord throughout the whole Blue Line Family," she said."I want this race to be about showing our community that our officers are human, have families, and are just like the rest of us. I want our officers to come together to build some camaraderie, and not only come together when something bad happens. I want it to be about their families and celebrating everything the sacrifice on a daily basis, plus get to build relationships with other police families," Nothstein said.It will be up to each beneficiary to decide how to use the proceeds."The Dickson Fund will go to his children, to make sure they don't have wants or needs, to put them through school, to memorialize his life," Nothstein added. "I hope the funds for the Bethlehem FOP and Lehighton go toward unexpected costs or any new equipment that would otherwise not be thought of without this money."Law enforcement is rapidly changing, and there are not enough funds in budgets to help them. A lot of departments are looking into body cameras and this may be out of their reach without our help. I also hope that they could use funds for local memorials to the officers who have already paid the ultimate sacrifice," she said.