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Florida 10-year-old honors fallen Officer Sean Tuder in special way

A 10-year-old boy from Florida has a special way of honoring law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty.

Flag in hand, Zechariah Cartledge begins his 1-mile run. He’d just finished one run on Sunday, when he heard the news.

Officer Sean Tuder was killed while trying to arrest a suspect in Mobile, Alabama.

STORY: Officer from Clay County killed in line of duty in Alabama

Tuder grew up in Clay County and was a police officer for the Palatka Police Department before moving to Mobile.

“The emotion on his face was just gut-wrenching,” Zechariah’s father, Chad Cartledge, said. “He was furious. He was upset. The first thing he asked us was, ‘Why does this keep happening?’”

Chad Cartledge told Action News Jax that Zechariah has always had a deep respect for law enforcement.

That’s why he began Running for Heroes -- a campaign to honor fallen police officers.

Last year Zechariah raised $11,250 for the Tunnel to Towers foundation.

Zechariah has run 1 mile around his neighborhood as a salute to each officer killed in the line of duty in 2019.

He plans to honor every police officer killed in the line of duty in 2018 with a series of runs and marathons this year.

“This violence needs to stop,” he said in a Facebook video from Tuder’s run. “(Officers) go home to husbands, wives, children every day and if they can’t see them that’s just going to break their hearts.”

Chad Cartledge said after posting the video, they were contacted by Officer Tuder’s family.

The family sent Action News Jax a statement saying Zechariah's run touched their hearts deeply.

Chad Cartledge said other officers have also been in touch.

“Encouraging our son and letting him know what he’s doing is really making a positive impact for the lives of families that have lost the officers and the LEOs that work now,” he said.

Zechariah said he plans to keep running to honor all officers and their families.

Statement from Tuder's family:

"It was beautiful, it touched our hearts deeply. We thank him from the bottom of our hearts! My husband Christopher Tuder has been distraught over the loss of his brother Sean and this touched him deeply having a son of his own. It really hit home. He is currently trying with the help of Clay County Sheriff's Office to reach out to the family to thank them and possibly meet them and the little boy and let them know how much we appreciate their raising of this wonderful young man."

STORY: Alabama police shooting: Mobile officer killed; man charged with capital murder

The Mobile Police Department set up a Memorial Fund for the family of Officer Sean Tuder. Click here for more information.