Special Olympics Has Local Officers On The Run

Local law enforcement officers are coming together with a special group of athletes Thursday for a 18-mile run from the Marin County Civic Center to the Golden Gate Bridge.

Officers and athletes will carry the torch for the Special Olympics Summers Games, which begin June 22 at University of California, Davis. 

Twin Cities police officer Patty Monge will join fellow officers for the relay, which starts at 8 a.m. The route is scheduled to take runners from the Civic Center, past the San Rafael Police Department, over Wolfe Grade, down to Bon Air and onto Magnolia, before turning onto Doherty Drive and past the new Twin Cities Police headquarters. The run eventually descends into Mill Valley and then on toward the Golden Gate Bridge, where the torch will be handed to members of the San Francisco Police Department.

The Law Enforcement Torch Run is a major fundraiser for the Northern California Special Olympics. It has raised more than $6 million dollars since its inception in 1998.

Overall, more than 1,000 members of the Northern California Law Enforcement community and Special Olympics Northern California athletes will participate in the two-week torch run, which started June 8.

More than 900 athletes and volunteer coaches from all over Northern California will join the competition at UC Davis. After weeks of training and participating in qualifying competitions, athletes will compete in aquatics, bocce, tennis or track and field.