MOORESVILLE, N.C.,None — Near the same field where he once played football, dozens gathered at Mooresville High School in honor of Cpl. Garrett Carnes.
“I can’t stop crying,” said Angel Every, Carnes’ grandmother. “It’s unbelievable what everybody’s doing.”
Carnes, a 22-year-old marine, was clearing homes at a village in Afghanistan in February when he stepped on a roadside bomb.
“When we got the news – I can’t even tell you. It was very hard to take,” said Every.
While he begins the difficult road to recovery at a military hospital in Maryland, hundreds of miles away, his hometown wanted to help. Saturday they held a walk and fundraiser for Carnes.
“It’s just overwhelming to see how many people that don’t even know my family have come out and reached out to us,” said Garrett’s brother, Zach Carnes.
Supporters signed banners and bought t-shirts for Carnes, raising about $15,000 to help the marine who graduated from Mooresville High in 2008. Perhaps most importantly, though, they walked – each step as a tribute to the wounded warrior who now must learn to walk again.
“Garrett’s definitely a hero, and nothing holds him down,” said Zach.
Carnes’ family says he is doing better. They’re hoping to have him return home to Mooresville in a few months.
WSOC
