Final leg of relay kicks off Special Olympics games

With a smile on her face and pumps on her feet, Virginia first lady Anne Holton accepted the Flame of Hope from Virginia Beach swimmer Max Everton.

"This brings together two of my favorite groups -- law enforcement and the Special Olympics," she said yesterday during an afternoon ceremony outside the state Capitol.

After a round of speeches, Everton -- flame back in hand -- took off with Richmond Police Chief Bryan T. Norwood and Virginia Attorney General Bill Mims with about 50 state law-enforcement officers in tow on the final leg of the weeklong, nearly 2,000-mile Virginia Law Enforcement Torch Relay that kicked off the 2009 Virginia Special Olympics Summer Games.

Since its inception in 1986, the relay has raised more than $11 million for the Special Olympics, including about $750,000 this year. The money helps fund the Special Olympics' six statewide games, including the games that run throughout the day today.

With police cars lining Grace Street and motorcycles bringing up the rear, the runners headed west on the first steps of the 7 miles or so that separated the flame from the Robins Center at the University of Richmond.

"We always hear about 'protect and serve,' but we rarely get to 'see the serve,'" said Debbie Apperson, the development director in the Special Olympics Tidewater office. "This is the 'serve.'"

Rick Jeffrey, the president of Special Olympics of Virginia, said the relay and the games they kick off "is the way the world should be."

"A lot of times, we don't get it," he said. "You hear words like 'retard' or 'retarded,' or even Special Olympics itself used as a metaphor for 'not good enough.' You're telling me this is not good enough?

"The Special Olympics is more than good enough. . . . It's an environment where everyone participates as an equal."

Contact Zachary Reid at (804) 775-8179 or .