Cops carry the torch for a worthy cause

Posted 6/8/23

The East Bay leg of The Law Enforcement Torch Run, which benefits the Special Olympics, began at the Bristol Police station last Friday.

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Cops carry the torch for a worthy cause

Posted

On Friday, June 2, local law enforcement officers across the state came together for The Law Enforcement Torch Run, the largest grassroots fundraising program benefiting Special Olympics. The East Bay leg began at the Bristol Police station, headed south on Metacom Avenue and West on State Street, turning north on Hope Street and following route 114 to East Providence.

The Law Enforcement Torch Run began in 1981 when six police officers from Wichita, Kan. carried a torch into a high school after their chief saw an urgent need to raise funds for and increase awareness of the Special Olympics.

After three years of successful runs in Kansas, the International Association of Chiefs of Police endorsed Special Olympics as its official charity through the Torch Run. Today, all 50 states and over 40 countries have their own versions of the Torch Run, with more than 100,000 law enforcement members participating.

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A lifelong Portsmouth resident, Jim graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1982 and earned a journalism degree from the University of Rhode Island in 1986. He's worked two different stints at East Bay Newspapers, for a total of 18 years with the company so far. When not running all over town bringing you the news from Portsmouth, Jim listens to lots and lots and lots of music, watches obscure silent films from the '20s and usually has three books going at once. He also loves to cook crazy New Orleans dishes for his wife of 25 years, Michelle, and their two sons, Jake and Max.