PML/Image Credit: Mike Vanden Bosch
Torch Run

Dedicated volunteer Betty Coleman highlights Law Enforcement Torch Run in Chilliwack

Jun 24, 2022 | 1:02 PM

CHILLIWACK – For nearly three decades, Betty Coleman has been a force for good as an essential member of the Chilliwack Crime Prevention volunteers.

The inescapable joy she shares with visitors to the downtown Chilliwack Community Policing office when she greets them at the front desk or on the phone was also on display for the walking start of Thursday’s Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics of BC at Peach Park along the Vedder Rotary Trail.

To get the fundraising walk off on the right foot, Coleman, a Special Olympian, shared the torch with RCMP Sergeant Krista Vrolyk, who calls Coleman a dear friend and a valued member of the Community Policing Office.

“Betty has been a volunteer with Chilliwack Crime Prevention for the past 29 years,” Vrolyk said. “She volunteers weekly for us working the phones and front counter of our downtown community policing office on Wellington Avenue. She is so positive and enthusiastic and brings so much joy and happiness to everyone around her.”

Public health restrictions due to COVID-19 sidelined the Chilliwack event the past two years, but those public health measures were relaxed earlier this year, paving the way for the first walk since 2019. Sunny skies and cool weather provided optimal conditions for the 1.5-kilometer walk to Vedder Bridge.

The Law Enforcement Torch Run serves as the largest public awareness and grassroots fundraising organization for Special Olympics worldwide. Law enforcement partners with Special Olympics BC volunteers, athletes and supporters to walk or run to raise funds and awareness for Special Olympics.

It’s a cause that’s near and dear to Vrolyk.

“Throughout my career I have been involved in various capabilities with Special Olympics whether it be through the Law Enforcement Torch Run, or playing basketball or soccer against the Special Olympians,” Vrolyk said. “Special Olympics provides these athletes a place where they belong, a place they can have fun and a place where they can accomplish goals and experience teamwork. It is so exciting to see athletes thrive in the opportunities provided by Special Olympics.”

The Law Enforcement Torch Run has raised more than $72 million in Canada since its inception.