Jeffersontown supports Officer Wilt at Gaslight Festival Parade

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - Every year, the Jeffersontown Gaslight Festival Parade starts off in the same spot where the festival began.

In 1969, it started as a small business festival at the Jeffersontown Commons Shopping Center.

Now, it’s grown into an eight-day event that draws nearly 200,000 people to the city every year.

However this year was special to the community, who came together to support a hometown hero.

LMPD officer Nick Wilt and his family were the grand marshals of this year’s parade. Crowds lined the streets to cheer Wilt on, who smiled and waved as he passed by.

Wilt has been recovering at home since July when he was released from Frazier Rehab. He was listed in critical condition for over a month after being shot in the head while responding to the Old National Bank shooting in April.

For Jeffersontown Mayor Carol Pike, who is close to Wilt’s family, seeing him out and on the mend is nothing short of a miracle.

“It means that there’s a God,” Pike said. “If it wasn’t for Him, Nick wouldn’t be here today. It’s very emotional to me that he’s here.”

Mayor Pike said Wilt continues to tackle every day with a positive attitude as he works through the challenges ahead of him.

“With everything that Officer Wilt has done for our community to keep us safe, we just wanted to express our gratitude and love for him and his family and let them know we’re lifting him up,” Jeffersontown Chamber President Deana Karem said.

“His spirits are high and his family’s spirits are high,” Pike said. “It takes a village to help him right now.”

The Gaslight Festival weekend kicks off Friday and continues through Sunday. For more information, click or tap here.

You can donate to Officer Wilt and his family through the LMPD Foundation here.

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