Back in 2022, New Philadelphia Police Chief Tessa Pohovey, then a captain, was the department’s first officer to carry the Special Olympics torch through the city.
This year she was joined by another officer, three firefighters, the city health director and Special Olympics athlete Matthew Toole Junior.
Pohovey says carrying the Flame of Hope to lead into this weekend’s Ohio Summer Games is something she wouldn’t miss.
The Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics started in 1981 but has only been going through Tuscarawas County for the past few years. One of the Torch Run’s organizers Nathan Samples says the Tuscarawas County Rockets Special Olympics team has been a great addition to the route.
Police Departments and first responders in Strasburg, Dover, New Philadelphia and Sugarcreek carried the Flame of Hope through the county Thursday. The Summer Games start Friday in Columbus with more than 30 local athletes participating.
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