Welcome Torch Runners & Athletes!
The Final Leg Planning Committee and Management Team could not be more excited to welcome you as members of the 2025 LETR Final Leg Team.One of our core missions is to ensure inclusion for all of our athletes. However, your selection as Torch Runners and Athletes to the Final Leg Team places each of you in a very EXCLUSIVE group. When you consider that literally millions of law enforcement officers, athletes, community members and others have participated in our countless fundraising events, competitions and activities, you are truly among a very select group who have the honor and duty to carry out one of our most important missions. Do not take your selection lightly.
You are the best of the best and we could not be prouder to have you carry the Flame of Hope throughout Italy and safely deliver that torch to the Opening Ceremonies at the 2025 Special Olympics World Winter Games.
This blog post will serve as our conduit to deliver information to you. It's open 24 hours a day, seven days a week for your perusal. You don't have to worry about searching for a missed email or communication. All of the information will be here, and the blog is searchable if you're looking for something specific.
Additionally, your Torch Run Directors and LETR Liaisons will have access to this blog so that important dates are known by all from the same source.
On a serious note, THIS IS NOT A PUBLIC BLOG. The information contained here is for your consumption. Do not share the blog link with family, friends, or coworkers.
One of the highlights of this blog is your ability to ask questions and make comments on the posts. If you have a question, many of your teammates likely have the same thought. The Management Team closely monitors the blog to ensure timely responses to any questions you may have.
As this message is composed, very little information is available to share regarding our trip to Italy. Unfortunately, the planning process has been delayed beyond the control of the LETR International Executive Council and Special Olympics. However, as information becomes available, you will be the first to know.
In the very near future, each of you will be assigned to a team comprised of approximately nine Torch Runners (including an Italian Police Officer), one Special Olympics athlete, and a Team Leader. Each of the Team Leaders has participated as a Torch Runner in a previous Final Leg and may have previously served in a Team Leader capacity. They have all been selected for this important position because they are the best, of the best, of the best.
Once you have been placed on a team, your Team Leader will schedule multiple Zoom meetings prior to our departure to Italy. These are great forums to not only meet one another, share information about the Final Leg, and answer all of your questions.
We will also be planning a signature fundraising events under the superior leadership of Bill Proll (retired Lieutenant from the San Luis Obispo California Police Dept.), who is not only a veteran Torch Runner, Team Leader and Logistics Team member, but is arguably the single most impactful Final Leg fundraiser this event has seen. He will not only organize our event but provide guidance on best practices and leveraging your participation in the Final Leg.
Not only can the fundraiser help your program cover the costs of your participation, but also earn you a pretty significant piece of Final Leg memorabilia. More about that later.
That is a lot of info for one post, so take it in, digest it, ask questions, and stay tuned. There is still a TON of information to share.
Until next time, stay safe, and if you haven't started already, KEEP RUNNING!
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