Crossing Quebec for Enfant Soleil
The Sherbrooke Police Relay for Opération Enfant Soleil is back for a fourth edition this June. This coming Thursday, June 1 at 8 a.m. nine police officers take off from the Sherbrooke police station, running 603kilometre relay to Amqui, near the Gaspé peninsula.
Jean-françois Roy-côté, spokesperson for the relay, said that the race was created to help people in need.
“Doing our job, we wind up in all kinds of situations,” he said. “We get to see human suffering.”
Having a daughter with special needs (autism) himself, Roy-côté found it important to help families less fortunate than his own. For that reason, the Sherbrooke Police Department decided to use the relay as an opportunity to raise funds for Opération Enfant Soleil, a nonprofit organization that supports care and services for sick children.
Billy Poirier, originally from Amqui, was the one to begin the initiative in 2013. He and other officers, including Roy-côté, were accustomed to running relay races, participating in events such as the Memphrémagog Lake Relay and the Regina Beach Relay.
Roy-côté explained that they decided to organize their own race, while upping the ante. So was born the 603-kilometre race to Amqui, Poirier’s hometown, just down the road from St-donat-de-rimouski where Roy-côté is originally from.
According to Roy-côté, the relay is about teamwork and wanting to help children in need.
“We pay for this out of our own pocket, in a way,” he said, explaining all the participants are volunteering their time. “We aren’t given days off, but we’re happy to do it” commented Roy-côté.
The race is continuously run over a period of about four days. The participants each take turns running ten kilometres. Once done, the runner retreats to the RV that follows their trajectory, explained Roy-côté, and another runner takes over. According to him, each officer runs approximately 60 kilometres in total. A police patrol car also follows along to ensure the safety of the contenders.
This year, sports journalist Mark Bryson, who comments on the Sherbrooke Phoenix games, will be running with the officers as a special guest.
The previous Sherbrooke police relay race gathered $16,334 for Opération Enfant Soleil. This year, they are hoping to surpass that number. Donations can be made via their Facebook page (Relais des policiers de Sherbrooke pour Opération Enfant Soleil) as well as in person during the relay or at the Sherbrooke police station.
Since it began, the relay has managed to collect over $50,000 for Opération Enfant Soleil.