(NASHVILLE, TENN. — September 3, 2016) Family and friends gathered earlier today in Elkhorn, Nebraska to remember the life of Lane Graves on what would have been his third birthday. The story of the boy killed by an alligator while vacationing at Disney World shocked the country -- and made a deep impact on his rural hometown with a population under 10,000.
The Love for Lane Celebration was held at the Elkhorn South High School’s football field and the family asked that everyone wear Lane’s favorite color, blue. A Facebook page was set up for the event asking that the community, “come together and surround the Graves family with our love and support for them and their sweet angel, Lane.”
According to a statement released to People Magazine the Graves family wanted to commemorate Lane’s birthday and honor the time they had with him. “We will celebrate LT’s first birthday in heaven and the two years, nine months and 11 days we spent together as a family. We sincerely thank the thousands of Nebraskans and others from around the country who have been so supportive of our family with cards, letters and acts of kindness over the past several months.”
The Graves family established the Lane Thomas Foundation to honor his memory. “Losing Lane has broken our hearts in the worst possible way. While there is no way to mend our hearts, we can do good work in his honor,” said Matt and Melissa Graves on the foundation website. The foundation will make direct donations to various charitable organizations.
The Nebraska based RFD-TV covered the event for RFD-TV News.
The following media assets have been made available:
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About Rural Media Group, Inc. (RMG):
Rural Media Group, Inc. is the world’s leading provider of multimedia content dedicated to the rural and Western lifestyle. With a mission of reconnecting “city with country,” RMG is the parent company of RFD-TV, RURAL RADIO, FamilyNet, RFD-TV The Magazine, and RFD-TV The Theatre. RMG networks are distributed to more than 100 million homes worldwide by DBS, telco and cable systems including DISH Network, DIRECTV®, Comcast, AT&T U-Verse, Mediacom, Charter Spectrum, Suddenlink, Cox, and more than 600 independent rural cable systems. Corporate headquarters and broadcast operations are in Nashville, Tennessee.
About RFD-TV:
RFD-TV is the flagship network for Rural Media Group. Launched in December 2000, RFD-TV is the nation’s first 24-hour television network featuring programming focused on the agribusiness, equine and the rural lifestyle, along with traditional country music and entertainment. Top RFD-TV programming includes “MARKET DAY REPORT,” “RURAL EVENING NEWS,” “RURAL AMERICA LIVE,” “WESTERN SPORTS WEEKLY,” rodeo events such as “The American,” and award-winning musical entertainment such as “The Best of The Marty Stuart Show,” “Hee Haw,” “Ray Stevens’ Nashville,” and “Larry’s Country Diner.”
MEDIA CONTACTS:
Billy Frey, Chief Marketing Officer, RFD-TV, e: billy@rfdtv.com, o: (615) 296-9357
Heather Huston, VP of Marketing, RFD-TV & RURAL RADIO, e: heather@rfdtv.com, o: (615) 296-9332