Torch Run comes through Columbus

On a warm Thursday afternoon, three law enforcement officers ran down Highway 10 from Park City west carrying the Missoula-bound 2016 Special Olympics torch.
Stillwater County Sheriff’s Deputy Randy Smith was the local officer participating, running about 2.5 miles as a small convoy of patrol cars escorted them. The Law Enforcement Torch Run (LETR) relay began April 25 and will have covered 2,300 miles when it arrives in Missoula on May 18, where it will light the cauldron and officially open the summer games of the Special Olympics.
According to LETR’s mission statement, its goal is to raise funds for and awareness of the Special Olympics Movement worldwide. Special Olympics is a program that “daily reaffirms the beliefs that with hope, love and dedication we can see achievement and self-worth realized by any individual. It is our belief that persons with intellectual disabilities, by their involvement in Special Olympics, show the community at large the true meaning of sports and a pure joy towards life,” according to LETR.
A total of 16 city, county, state and federal law enforcement agencies are involved in this year’s Torch Run, including Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, the U.S. Border Patrol, Montana Highway Patrol, the Montana Department of Correction and the U.S. Marshals Service.

Special Olympics Facts & Figures
Montana hosted its first Special Olympic Summer State Games in 1979 with 400 athletes participating.
It has grown to 2,000 athletes from 65 Montana communities who train and compete year round.
Athletes range from 8 to 86-years-old and more than 4,000 volunteers give their time and talent annually to make this happen, according to the Montana Special Olympics website.