NESN’s Tom Caron Shares Heartfelt Words After Lewiston Shootings

Tom Caron’s heart broke for his hometown of Lewiston, Maine, after an armed gunman killed 18 people and injured more than a dozen others during the country’s latest mass shooting Wednesday night.

Robert Card, who killed those 18 people at a local restaurant and bowling alley, was found dead Friday night. He died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Speaking with The Boston Globe’s Tara Sullivan, Caron offered heartfelt remarks on his hometown of Lewiston.

“It’s a great town,” the longtime Red Sox broadcaster told The Boston Globe. “Listen, there’s a lot of people across the country who are thinking this is like the town in ‘Murder, She Wrote.’ But this is not Cabot Cove. It’s an industrial mill town, it’s got a great university in Bates. This is an ethnic melting pot just like the rest of society.”

Caron added: “My son once told me, how did he put it, ‘Dad, you have the greatest work ethic of anyone I’ve ever known.’ That is 100 percent from growing up in Lewiston. It’s a city where you just had to work your tail off to get along. Anyone from Lewiston will tell you you’re going to work.”

Support for Lewiston has poured in from those all over the United States, and specifically all over New England. Both the Boston Bruins and Boston Celtics, who each have lower-level clubs in the state, issued statements. As did Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery, who played four seasons for the University of Maine, and the New England Patriots organization.

While speaking at the “One Lewiston” vigil Sunday night, Caron referenced the message Red Sox legend David Ortiz offered the City of Boston after the Boston Marathon bombing.

“This is our city,” Caron told the crowd at the Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Lewiston, per WMTW-TV. “Together, we will get through this. Together, we will be stronger. Together, we will remain, as the sign says, hopeful.

“I have never been more proud to be a kid from Lewiston, Maine. I will carry that pride with me wherever I go for the rest of my days. I hope you do the same.”