Get fired up for the Torch Run
NJ State PBA members ready to carry the load for Special Olympics
Nothing galvanizes a community and its residents like the events
in early June when the Special Olympics Law Enforcement Torch Run
dashes through town. Kids take off running after New Jersey’s cops,
spectators rise and cheer and NJ State PBA members thrive on being
part of an event that raises thousands of dollars for Special Olympics
NJ.
“I think this is one event that brings together our members from
across the state and they find participating truly inspiring,” says Kevin
Lyons, the NJ State PBA Special Olympics Liaison. “I can tell you there
is nothing like the moment when the Torch Run comes into the Opening Ceremony of the New Jersey Special Olympic Games. Anybody
who has ever taken part knows how uplifting that moment can be.”
On June 12, NJ law enforcement officers will carry the “Flame of
Hope” more than 750 miles throughout the Garden State and into the
2015 Special Olympics New Jersey Summer Games, held at the College
of New Jersey in Ewing.
During the 32nd annual Law
Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics New Jersey, more than
3,000 officers split up into 26 separate legs with some starting as early
as 4:45 a.m.
“Law enforcement and Special Olympics have been great friends
for more than 30 years,” says Chief Robert Belfiore, Retired Deputy
Chief of the Port Authority of NY/NJ and Director of the New Jersey
Torch Run. “It is our duty to support these athletes through our
fundraising, but on a more personal note, it is our privilege to carry
this torch as a symbol of our bond, and to encourage everyone to see
just how much our local Special Olympics athletes can do.”
The culmination of the run is the lighting of the Special Olympics
New Jersey cauldron at the Opening Ceremony. More than 2,500 Special Olympics athletes, and their families and fans, will gather at The
College of New Jersey to watch the final leg of law enforcement officers
bear the torch, opening Special Olympics New Jersey’s largest competition event of the year. During the ensuing two days, athletes will
compete in aquatics, baseball, bocce, gymnastics, powerlifting, softball, tennis, and track and field, where again officers will volunteer
their time by awarding medals to the triumphant athletes.
The Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics New Jersey
is recognized as a leader in fundraising among the many programs
around the globe, and in 2014 raised more than $3.1 million for the
athletes of Special Olympics New Jersey.
“Special Olympics New Jersey athletes are fortunate to train, compete, and have access to many health and leadership programs com-
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pletely free of charge,” says Jason Schubert, Senior Director of Law
Enforcement Sponsorship for Special Olympics New Jersey. “None of
it would be possible without the dedication of our law enforcement
officers. They truly are champions for our athletes.”
The Law Enforcement Torch Run (LETR) is part of an international
campaign for Special Olympics coordinated and managed by all divisions of Law Enforcement officers and officials from throughout the
world whose mission is to raise dollars and awareness of the Special
Olympics movement worldwide. The Law Enforcement Torch Run for
Special Olympics New Jersey has been recognized for many years as
one of the top grassroots fundraising organizations for Special
Olympics worldwide. In 2014, the LETR for Special Olympics New Jersey raised more than $3 million.
For more information on the 2015 Law Enforcement Torch Run,
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