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Started next leg headed south toward Bozeman this morning
Law enforcement officers, representatives and supporters on the Montana Special Olympics Torch Run come into Havre Wednesday afternoon. The torch was set to start this morning on the next part of its trip to the 2023 State Summer Games in Bozeman that start with the lighting of cauldron during opening ceremonies set for May 17.
Law enforcement officers came into Havre Wednesday carrying the torch on their leg of the Montana Special Olympics Torch Run.
The run was set to start again this morning, taking the torch, the journey of which started in Wolf Point, south on U.S. Highway 87 toward its final destination at the opening ceremonies of the 2023 State Summer Games in Bozeman May 17.
A release from Special Olympics Montana said the relay has 10 starting points around the state with hundreds of people carrying the "Flame of Hope" more than 2,400 miles, where the arrival and lighting of the cauldron will officially begin the games.
The relay started April 27, approximately three weeks before the games. The torch will make stops in numerous towns throughout the state.
The release said nearly 30 law enforcement agencies are participating in the run. Along with local law enforcement agencies, Montana Highway Patrol, U.S. Federal Probation and Parole, U.S. Border Patrol, Montana State Prison, Fish Wildlife and Parks, and Motor Carrier Services are part of this year's Law Enforcement Torch Run with the mission to raise funds and awareness of the Special Olympics Movement worldwide.
The fundraising helps to provide year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, the release said.
The Torch Run in Montana began in 1985, the release said. Each year, local Montana law enforcement raise several thousands of dollars for Special Olympics Montana athletes. In 2022, the Montana Law Enforcement Torch Run raised $399,886.76 for local athletes and broke $9 million dollars raised since the start of Montana's torch run program.
In addition to the Torch Run, law enforcement representatives throughout Montana participate in several special fund-raising events including the Polar Plunge and Tip-a-Cop, the release said. The premier law enforcement agency sponsors of the Montana Torch Run include the Montana Police Protective Association and Town Pump.
The Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics is an annual international program that involves thousands of law enforcement personnel raising millions of dollars annually to benefit Special Olympics programs in the United States and abroad, the release said. The Torch Run is the largest grassroots fundraiser and public awareness vehicle for Special Olympics and has raised more than $946 million since its inception in 1981.
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