Charlie Iles Jr., of Visalia Baptist Church in Covington, will walk to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital on July 4 carrying a 12-foot by 6-foot cross.
The walk was inspired by two young people who were shot and killed in Latonia on separate occasions in January. Aside from the murders, Iles Jr. said he is walking to bring awareness to absentee parents in the home.
“My church member Charlie Iles Jr. came to me and wanted to do something that would make an impact on the community,” said Pastor Robert Ashley Beagle of the Visalia Baptist Church. “Some way that we can speak out to people and let them know that we’re frustrated with what’s going on, and hopefully to get them to try to remedy the situation.”
Iles will start the walk at E 39th St. and Decoursey Ave. in Latonia, head down Madison Avenue in Covington, over the Roebling bridge and through Cincinnati to the hospital at 3333 Burnet Ave. The walk is roughly 14 miles.
“I keep watching murder after murder, but this time, it happened in my neighborhood,” Iles Jr. said. “And they seem to can’t find the solution to it. There’s a separation between church and state, and I think it’s time for a different outlook on that.”
Iles Jr. said they are asking for anyone who knows who Jesus is and loves Jesus to stand up for him and come out on July 4.
“I believe it’ll be a day to stand up and fight for what’s going on in our country with all the gun violence and drugs and just the beatdown of the families,” Iles Jr. said. “We’re hoping to get people that are lost saved. I believe we got the solution and it’s called the Bible. It’s the word of Jesus Christ.”
Iles Jr. is a father and grandfather. He is now responsible for caring for his grandkids after his daughter’s passing and their father’s absence.
“If you grew up in a home yourself without a father, it’s hard to know what to do as a father,” Iles Jr. said. “So that’s the answer to it right there, just being a mother and a father, not walking away from that family.”
Beagle said he plans to walk the first four or five blocks with Iles. Other church members will join Iles on the walk, and others will be in their cars throughout the trek with cold water. Beagle said they informed the Covington and Cincinnati Police Departments of their plan to help watch for the walkers.
“Just like for anybody that’s having the struggles that I’m having right now with raising children without the mother in the house, without the father in the house with what’s going on in our school systems, there’s just so many things that are wrong in this country right now,” Iles Jr. said. “It’s hard for me to go out and light a firework and let it go up in the air and go off and feel like I’m proud to be here.”
