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Retired police sergeant completes 50 marathons in 50 days to honor fallen officer

CBS News Live
CBS News Pittsburgh Live

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - A retired Rochester police officer found a unique and inspiring way to honor a fallen colleague. 

Retired sergeant Brett Sobieraski completed 50 marathons in 50 days, which took him through eight states, including Pennsylvania, from Florida to New York. 

Sobieraski passed through our area - Allegheny, Greene, Fayette, Westmoreland, and Washington counties on the weekend of May 26.   

On Sunday, he climbed the stairs of the Monroe County Hall of Justice to the sounds of cheers and bagpipes along with 850 people who joined him to run or walk the last three miles of his journey. 

His run was all to honor his fallen colleague Anthony Mazurkiewicz, who was killed in the line of duty in July 2022. Sobieraski's run had the goal of raising $100,000 for Mazurkiewicz's family - all the while running through Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania, and ultimately ending in New York. 

"I want to rename this '8 States For Maz – The Humanity Tour," Sobieraski said. "I met so many kind, gracious, and caring people along the way. Folks that gave me their last dollar to donate to the Mazurkiewicz family. I saw the fabric of America and it was indescribably beautiful. I wish everyone could have witnessed what I had seen and felt."

This isn't Sobieraski's first time attempting something like 50 marathons in 50 days. 

He has also run numerous 100-mile ultra-marathons, a double Ironman, and a swim across Lake Ontario. 

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