Chad Cartledge and Jen Jeffrey Billington
Former Chattanoogan.com staff writer Jen Jeffrey Billington has released her tenth book, "Honoring the Fallen—A Father’s Story," co-authored with Chad Cartledge of Running 4 Heroes and Forward written by Jonathan Hickory of “Break Every Chain.”
Launched on Friday, this work has quickly achieved rankings: #1 in New Releases under the Non-profit category and #2 in Best-sellers, with the potential to reach #1 today.
Ms. Billington and Mr. Cartledge joined forces in 2022 to narrate the inspiring true story of Zechariah Cartledge, Chad's son, who, at only 10 years old, founded the Non-profit Running 4 Heroes in 2019. Zechariah gained national attention after being interviewed on Fox News with Steve Doocy.
Driven by a passion for honoring first responders, he would run a mile for each law enforcement officer and firefighter who lost their lives in the line of duty. As part of his tribute, he carried a blue line or red line flag, which he would send to the families of the fallen. He also raised funds to support these families and injured first responders while establishing a Youth Runners program to provide student scholarships. Now 16, Zechariah will be retiring from his role as a Youth Runner at the end of this year.
Ms. Billington has long supported law enforcement, with both a son and granddaughter serving in the field. She has written two books on Birding, a Collection of Poetry, and a devotional. Along with her husband Jason, she also writes and illustrates a children's book series called Pengdom Living, which caters to children and adults with special needs. This series has two storybooks, with a third set to be released soon. In addition, Pengdom Living offers two joke books, all available on Amazon.
Ms. Billington is planning a book signing event in Chattanooga, with the date yet to be determined.
"Honoring the Fallen—A Father’s Story" communicates how the mission evolved into a national non-profit and provides a personal look into the lives of surviving family members and a law enforcement officer who survived a shooting and received support from Running 4 Heroes. The authors aim to highlight the critical importance of supporting our first responders. A percentage of the author's royalties will be donated to the Running 4 Heroes organization.
You can find the book available now at Amazon Books online.
jenjeffreybillington@gmail.com