LIMESTONE COUNTY, TX — The annual Limestone County Fair turned into a major fundraising effort to help the family of DPS Trooper Chad Walker after he was shot near Mexia Friday.
"Every year he would try to take off a week to be there with us," says Ty deCordova, childhood friend of Walker and the President of the Limestone County Fair Association.
Throughout the week the youth showcased their livestock, and on Saturday, the last day of the fair, the animals are put up for auction, including Trooper Walker and his children's animals.
"During the fair we were so excited we're pumped up and all that and then for us to hear that it might have been Chad, everybody was just so affected by that. It was so heavy around everyone I mean just a sadness came over us," says Tiffany Burleson, a friend of Walker and the treasurer for the Limestone County Fair Association.
Walker remains in critical condition at Baylor Scott & White.
During the auction, the final night of the fair, the Walker family watched online as their daughter's rabbits sold for $7,000 but it didn't stop there.
A man donated $8,000 to the Walker fund from auctioning off his pig.
"We all grew up together, went to school together, graduated together. We knew he touched a lot of lives, we knew he was a great guy, but you never know how much someone means until something like this," says deCordova.
One by one, people kept adding on to the fund which totaled what organizers say is anywhere from $80K-$100K and counting.
"This is a small town, we have small town stuff that goes on but when something like this happens, all of us pull together, we will do whatever it takes to help this family," says Burleson.
Donations for the Walker family will remain open as the small town prays for Trooper Walker's recovery.
"I'm hoping that they felt the love of our community in that moment. I hope that they know we care. Our prayers are with you, we hope you pull through this, and we will be there for whatever you need," says Burleson.
If you'd like to help out, head to the website HERE.
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