Law Enforcement Torch Run

The LETR began in 1981 when Wichita, Kansas Police Chief Richard LaMunyon conceived the Torch Run as a way to involve local law enforcement personnel in the community and to support Special Olympics Kansas.  After three years of successful Torch Runs in Kansas, LaMunyon presented the program to the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP).  With IACP’s enthusiastic support and leadership, as well as the involvement of all facets of the law enforcement community - sheriff’s associations, police unions, state, county, municipal, military and federal law enforcement, and corrections officers – the Torch Run is now active in all 50 United States, 10 Canadian provinces and territories and 35 nations, involving more than 90,000 law enforcement participants from all over the world.

The LETR began in 1987 in Iowa and has evolved into a year-round fundraiser.  In Iowa, events include our Final Leg Run, which kicks off the State Summer Games in May; statewide Polar Plunges, Cop on Tops, Tip a Cops, T-shirt sales, Truck Convoy, Car Show, Dance and Auction, Fishing Tournament and CARQUEST Awareness Days.