Crime & Safety

Special Olympics Torch Run Comes Through Town Today

The Runners Are Expected Around 3 This Afternoon

Six Montville Police officers are expected to participate in the Special Olympics Law Enforcement Torch Run, which is scheduled to go through town at about 3 this afternoon.

Officer Robin Salvatore is organizing the Montville PD runners. She says officers Michael Pelletier, , Michael Pierce andGarrett Boehm are running, starting at the Notwich town line on Route 32, over "Heart Attack Hill," then along Route 2A, and across the bridge. The Montville officers will run about 3.1 miles, Salvatore said.

The Law Enforcement Torch Run, according to the website, is the largest grass-roots fundraiser that Special Olympic has.

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The run raises more than $38 million annually for Special Olympics around the orld. More than 85,000 law enforcement personnel from 40 nations, 13 Canadian provinces and 50 states carried the "Flame of Hope," raising awareness and funds for Special Olympics.

At its most basic level, the Torch Run is an actual running event where officers and athletes carry the Special Olympics "Flame of Hope" to the Opening Ceremonies of local tournaments, or state, provincial or national summer or winter games.

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It includes a variety of fundraising vehicles, in addition to the actual Torch Run, such as T-shirt or merchandise sales, donations or pledges for runners in the Torch Run, corporate donations, and special events such as Penguin Plunges, golf tournaments and other local events.

The Torch Run will cover more than 530 miles and run through more than 100 cities and towns. More than 1,500 law enforcement officers and Special Olympics Athletes will participate, representing local, state, and federal departments, agencies and correctional facilities.

  • Day 1 - The run will end with a rally in Ledyard.
  • Day 2 - The day will end with the routes meeting at the Capital in Hartford where runners will come together for a celebratory wrap-up of the day's events.
  • Day 3 - The last day will end when the routes meet in New Haven for a celebratory wrap-up of the day's events at a site to be determined.

The final leg will take place on Friday, ending at the opening ceremonies for the 2011 Special Olympics Summer Games at the Southern Connecticut State University. The run will be approximately 1 mile long.

The goal for 2011 is to raise $550,000 for Special Olympics Connecticut.

Look for a story with video of the run in Thursday's Patch.


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