Memorial run in honor of the Hedingham shooting victim who was killed while running

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) – Runners will come together this summer to honor the life of a woman killed in the mass shooting in Raleigh’s Hedingham neighborhood. The North Carolina Road Runners Club is planning a memorial run for Sue Karnatz.

Karnatz died while running along the Neuse River Greenway. She was an avid runner.

Sue and Tom Karnatz met in 2004 through the North Carolina Road Runners Club. Running was a constant throughout their marriage.

“Running was kind of in the background throughout our relationship,” Karnatz said.

A memorial with flowers, messages of love and painted stones marks the spot where Sue was killed. When Karnatz now regularly walks past the monument on the greenway, a piece of Sue is with him.

“I have different thoughts on different days, and sometimes I just say hello as I walk by, and sometimes I stop and look at the memorial, or sometimes I shed a few tears and just think of Sue. said Karnatz.

She was one of five people killed in the mass shooting in October 2022, with two other people injured.

North Carolina Road Runners Club board member Tyler Pake said this is the first organized memorial run the club has held in Sue’s honor. Pake said the run was a way to keep her memory alive.

“Just to kind of pay tribute and let everyone know that she’s not forgotten and she was such a big part of the running community,” Pake said. “Just a way to carry on their name and just come together and bring a larger group together since it’s been a little more time since what happened.”

Pake said the race will run along the Neuse River Greenway and pass the memorial to Sue.

“I’m touched that people are interested in getting together, remembering Sue and maybe telling some funny stories,” Karnatz said.

Karnatz said that since Sue’s death, many people have stopped him to tell stories about how kind and encouraging she was while running, and he wants people to remember that as they run past the memorial.

“I just want people to think of her that way, and if there’s some of that that they can take into their lives and be kind and encouraging to others, that would be good,” Karnatz said.

People have run in Sue’s honor in the past, including in Run for Sue and the City of Oaks Marathon.

The memorial run, hosted by the North Carolina Road Runners Club, is scheduled for July around Sue’s birthday. Pake said it is open to anyone. CBS 17 will share details once the date and time are set.