Local runners are holding a memorial event on Wednesday in honor of 34-year-old Alyssa Lokits, the woman who was attacked and killed while exercising near a greenway in Antioch.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) – Local runners are holding a memorial event on Wednesday in honor of 34-year-old Alyssa Lokits, the woman who was attacked and killed while exercising near a greenway in Antioch.
According to the Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD), Lokits was exercising along the Mill Creek Greenway near Old Hickory Boulevard around 5:30 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 14 when she was fatally shot.
Witnesses told detectives they heard Lokits yelling, “Help! He’s trying to rape me,” before they heard gunshots. They also reported seeing “a man, possibly Asian, on top of Lokits before shots were fired.”
On Tuesday, Oct. 15, MNPD arrested Paul Park, 29, who they believe was the suspected shooter, and charged him with criminal homicide.
Bailey Jo Carter with Fleet Feet Nashville said anytime a tragedy like Lokits’ happens in the running community, the company is quick to want to bring people together.
“Giving people a place to go, to feel safe and be with a group to address it feels really good right away,” Carter said. “I don’t know that it’s addressed enough until it happens, and I think our response is we want to address this right away.”
Carter said if someone wants to go on a run, they should be able to come home afterward, but sadly, that’s not the case for everyone.
“You always think that would never be me, and we prepare in case it is, but you never know,” Carter said. “It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do, you’re not immune to the possibility of something like this happening.”
Since the traumatic attack on Lokits, Carter told News 2 that local run clubs, old friends of Lokits’ and concerned residents have been reaching out to Fleet Feet on social media asking for support and voicing concern for their safety.
“We see ourselves in her,” Carter said. “With it being here, it’s shaken a lot of people. We see ourselves as the person on the greenway at 5:30 p.m. walking, and I, unfortunately, know so many women that could have been, and I think that’s really hard for a lot of us right now.”
‘This is horrific’: Friends of woman killed in Antioch mourn as police share new details on the case
The memorial run is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 16 at Fleet Feet Hendersonville (300 Indian Lake Boulevard). Carter said there would be a moment of silence followed by a group run in honor of Lokits’ life as well as other women who died while on a run.
Fleet Feet staff will also discuss the items runners can have and actions they can take to stay safe while working out outside.
“We need this,” Carter said. “We just want to keep listening to what people are asking for to feel safest and provide that opportunity for them.”
In light of Lokits’ death, Carter said several people have registered for Fleet Feet Nashville’s upcoming Women’s Defense Course. It’s scheduled from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Nov. 2 at The Athlete Lab Franklin (256 Seaboard Lane). To learn more about the event or register, click here.
You can find Fleet Feet Nashville on their website as well as on Facebook, X and Instagram.