Heroes For Hope 5K run at Northwest Guilford High honors fallen policemen Nix and Horan

Original Source: Greensboro News & Record Published 05/09/25

Catherine Johnson and Sonya Desai ran together on Saturday morning in the inaugural Heroes For Hope 5K charity run held at Northwest Guilford High School in remembrance of fallen policemen Sgt. Dale Nix and Michael Horan.

Johnson and Desai, like many other Greensboro police officers, made their way through the course that started and finished at RL Billings Stadium’s track wearing a black shirt that on the front had an Obi-Wan Kenobi logo on it in remembrance of Nix, a friend who felt more like family.

Nix, a 23-year Greensboro policeman, died at age 50 after being fatally shot on Dec. 30, 2023 as he was approaching crime suspects at the Sheetz convenience store off Sandy Ridge Road.

Two months earlier, he had dressed up as Obi-Wan for a Halloween program held for children involved in the Guilford County Family Justice Center’s Camp Hope, a program aimed at helping children overcome the trauma of domestic violence and abuse.

Beneath the logo, a quote imprinted on the shirts from the Star Wars character sends the message of how Desai, Johnson and others working in the Family Justice Center have carried on without their supervisor and leader.

“If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine,” the statement reads.

On Saturday, about 160 people participated in Heroes For Hope, including family members of both fallen policemen, Greensboro Police chief John Thompson among other officers, student-athletes at Northwest, notably the school’s 7-3 boys lacrosse team featuring Nix’s son Will Nix, coaches and others associated with Northwest.

According to Northwest athletics director Jason Allred, the event generated $3,600 by Saturday morning, exceeding the original goal of $2,500, and paid tribute to Nix and Horan, a 44-year-old patrol officer who died a week before Nix after being shot down in the act of responding to a suspect with a firearm inside the Food Lion located on Lawndale Drive.

Plans for the event were initiated in October. Allred said that earlier this school year, the school’s Student Athlete Leadership Team (SALT) applied to enter the Chick-Fil-A Leader Academy, which requires service in the community. From there, the members of SALT decided on the idea behind this particular event as it combined being active with donating to a good cause.

“When the tragedy happened, we learned more about the Family Justice Center where he (Sgt. Nix) was so heavily involved, I spoke to Catherine and Sonya with that organization and we wanted to do something last year and they alerted me to this camp foundation,” Allred said. “So I researched that, felt it was a great service for children that have been affected by abuse and trauma and so we wanted that to be our charity of choice today. We hope to do this year in and year out and continue to support that organization.”

Fourteen SALT members, led by president Kara Rumple and vice president Kate Sechrist, volunteered at the race, carrying out duties such as setting up the course, monitoring the action and running the raffle, prize and merchandise tables. The group included Vikings girls lacrosse player Caitlin Ellsworth, daughter of Greensboro Police Sgt. Ethan Ellsworth, who knew both honored officers.

Tucker Saums, a Northwest boys lacrosse player, and Holly Carr finished first in the male and female divisions, respectively, and each received $50 Fleet Feet gift cards.

“This is definitely a really good leadership opportunity for us students, but also a great way to get involved in the community and know that our first responders are supported, that they are loved and we just want to help the families that were impacted by these unfortunate events,” Caitlin said.

Desai, the manager of the Guilford County FJC, and Johnson, the FJC director, each spoke highly of Nix, who was active in the program for several years.

Johnson described him as a “guy next door,” a neighbor and protector, who told elderly victims that if harm approached that should say that “your nephew Sgt. Nix” would come.

Desai, who knew him for 17 years and became his best friend, said he was compassionate and went above and beyond the call of duty.

Highly-respected, he presented at a national family justice conference in San Diego that both Desai and Johnson attended.

“I can think of a story right now where we had a victim that was just having a hard time,” Desai said. “She was scared of her abuser, she didn’t want to pursue, but that Sgt. Nix tone that he had, he just sat down with her, looked at her in the eyes and was like, ‘You can do this, you are important, your life matters’ and those were phrases you would hear all the time from Sgt. Nix.”

Doug Cerminaro was a friend of Horan. He originally met Horan through his uncle, who lived across the street from the police officer.

Cerminaro and his fiancé Maddie Chatham saw him weekly for about two years at his uncle’s Sunday dinners, in addition to seeing him in other social settings. For Cerminaro, Horan was a hard hitter but also a salt-of-the-earth kind of guy.

“He might complain about the work, but he would definitely do it no matter how hard it was,” Cerminaro said. “First and foremost, he was a great dad to his son and daughter. He worked a lot, but he was always, ‘Hey, want to get a beer?’ ‘Let’s go check out a new brewery,’ just an everyday guy. He might have been an officer, but he was a very dedicated father and he was just a funny, laid-back guy and that’s why people were able to relate to him.”

Horan was a football player and wrestler at Northwest, where he graduated in 1998. His career included 18 years serving as a life guard and first aid/CPR instructor. He was also a decorated US Coast Guard member who conducted defense operations in New York City and Washington D.C following the 2021 September 11th attacks and served counter-terror, counter-narcotics and counter-human trafficking missions. A longtime policeman, he joined the Greensboro department in 2017 and was sworn in in 2018.

In 2019 during a family trip at Emerald Isle, he swam about 60 yards offshore against a rip current to save a father and son from drowning, for which he received a Lifesaving Award from Greensboro Police.

“He was really about putting other people first,” Cerminaro said. “Even if he didn’t know them, he was definitely known for helping out people. Even if he didn’t know them, he just knew what he needed to do and got it done.”