The Patrick County Sheriff’s Office will host the Special Olympics Law Enforcement Torch Run on June 3.
Participants will leave the Patrick County Circuit Court at 7 a.m., and run more than 14 miles to the Henry County line on U.S. 58.
There, local runners will be met by participants from Martinsville and Henry County, who will then carry the torch to the next stop.
The Law Enforcement Torch Run is Special Olympics’ largest grassroots fundraiser. More than 2,000 officers, known as Guardians of the Flame, alongside community members and Special Olympics athletes, will carry the “Flame of Hope” almost 2,000 miles to the Summer Games Opening Ceremony in Richmond this June.
The Special Olympics mission remains as vital today as it did when the movement was founded 50 years ago in 1968. They provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities. This gives them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community.
The program, however, is about more than just sports. It envisions a world in which people with intellectual disabilities lead healthy, vibrant lives grounded in ongoing sports and physical activity, sound nutrition and a deeply held conviction to improve, compete, achieve and demonstrate their personal best to themselves and their community. The program’s current strategic plan is focused on continued programmatic growth, program quality and increased funding.
To help support Special Olympics Virginia and the Law Enforcement Torch Run, consider either making a one-time donation or registering to run at https://bit.ly/2Eh9Kju.
For more information, call Patrick County Sheriff’s Deputy Roger Bell at (276) 694-3714, ext. 254.