MEXICO – About 3 miles into a 6-mile run from Rumford to Dixfield in Thursday morning’s rain and wind on the edge of Route 2, Rumford Patrolman Douglas Maifeld had to take a breather.
It was the 41-year-old’s 19th consecutive such run bearing the unlit Maine Special Olympics Flame of Hope torch during the Law Enforcement Torch Run for the 2006 Special Olympics Summer Games.
Running with him and helping carry the torch were fellow Patrolmen Matt Noyes and K. Scott Mills, who are in their 20s. It was Noyes’ second torch run; a debut for Mills.
Each year, about 700 Maine law enforcement members – carrying a Flame of Hope torch – run approximately 900 miles in sections. Each of the 15 sections, or legs, covers a portion of Maine.
The law enforcement torch runs are Special Olympics’ largest grassroots fund-raiser and public awareness vehicle, Maifeld said Thursday.
“To date, the Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics Maine has raised more than $1 million,” he said.
The run ends Friday evening during opening ceremonies of the Summer Games, when one torch is lit and carried into the ceremony by a final-leg team. Last year, Maifeld was chosen to be in that team, flying into the Orono college aboard a LifeFlight helicopter.
When it landed, Maifeld said he and a Special Olympian ran the lit torch in to start the games.
But on Thursday, Maifeld, who in 1998 was one of the first two officers inducted into the Maine Law Enforcement Torch Run Hall of Fame, struggled to keep up with the fast pace set by Noyes and Mills.
“I’ve been running this for as long as they’ve been alive, but, at 41, I guess I can’t go out and play with the 20-year-olds. It’s for a good cause, but, I’m getting too old for this,” he said.
That’s why in Mexico he had to take advantage of the flashing-lights escort by fellow Patrolmen Tracey Higley and Paul Casey and collapse into the back of the department’s Drug Abuse Resistance Education sport-utility cruiser, being driven by Higley.
Mills and Noyes continued running behind it, handing off the torch in Dixfield to Dixfield Patrolman Eric Bernier. Bernier was to take it to East Dixfield, where more officers waited to continue advancing it.
“I’m getting too old for this,” said Maifeld, who with Mills, had worked an 8-hour graveyard shift prior to the 6 a.m. run.
Maifeld began doing torch runs in 1988 as a reserve Rumford officer. Since then, he said he has raised $10,000 for Maine Special Olympians, and volunteered his time to participate in parades and award medals to athletes at both the state’s Winter and Summer Special Olympics.
In addition to last year’s honor and the induction, Maifeld was one of two police officers chosen in 2002 by Special Olympics Maine to represent the state at a Salute to Hope, Honor and Courage in New York City. It was, Maifeld said, a tribute to those lost in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
“When do you ever get to run around New York City with a lit torch? To get that honor, it meant a lot to me,” as did the Hall of Fame induction, Maifeld said.
“Assisting in helping Special Olympics Maine has been a great pleasure of mine, both while representing the Rumford Police Department and volunteering my own time. I have gotten 10 times more from Special Olympics than I could ever give back.”
Please support your local Special Olympics. Attend some of their games. You’ll never forget the experience,” he added.
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