THUNDER BAY - With violent crime on the rise in cities across Canada, including Thunder Bay, police service officers remain on the frontline of keeping the public and community safe. But every officer, no matter how many years of service, knows that duty can come with a terrible price.
“It’s very important that people and officers are cognizant of the fact that any call you go to, no matter how routine, could end up in a life or death situation,” said Thunder Bay Police Association president, Greg Stephenson.
Officers from police services across the region and beyond marched down city streets on Sunday for the 27th Annual Police and Peace Officer’s National Memorial Day.
A national march was held in Ottawa and the Thunder Bay Police Service sent six officers to participate. But Stephenson said it is important for the officers and community to continue to hold a local march as well.
“Everybody who puts on a badge and a uniform, you never know from one shift to the next if you will be returning home,” he said. “So it’s important for us to remember them.”
The march began at the old Provincial Courthouse on Arthur Street and ended at St. Paul’s Anglican Church for a memorial service to honour officers from across the country that have fallen in the line of duty.
Officers from the Thunder Bay Police Service, Ontario Provincial Police, Nishnawbe Aski Police Service, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and officers from Superior Police in Wisconsin participated in the march.
“It doesn’t matter what uniform,” Stephenson said. “We are all sworn to do the same job and it’s nice to march together in one unified group and show our solidarity. It spans the country and the world. Police officers lose their lives every day. It’s an unfortunate part of our job.”
Sgt. Adam Poskozim of Superior Police said it is important for him to attend the memorial march in support of Canadian police services because he knows the pain that comes with seeing an officer killed in the line of duty, having attended six funerals for fallen officers.
“When police officers go to work, they don’t know what their day is going hold for them and there are a lot of families that have been touched by tragedy,” he said. “These events help bring recognition to some of the dangers law enforcement have.”
“By having these events and by participating in it, it can help the community and help some of the families recognize that there is support for officers,” Poskozim continued.
Two officers with the Thunder Bay Police Service have been lost in the line of duty, including Const. John Kusznier, who was shot and killed when responding to a call on Jan. 15, 1978, and Const. Joseph Prevett, who was killed during a training exercise in Gravenhurst, Ont. in May 2014.
Even though the last officer to be killed in Thunder Bay because of gun violence was 40 years ago, a growing number of incidents involving firearms, including two this past month, are on the minds of frontline officers, Stephenson said.
“Every time you attend a call, it’s a gun call because you always have your own gun,” he added. “It is definitely in the minds of our officers. The community recognizes the fact that we do put our lives on the line every day and you never know from one call to the next, especially in this day and age with all the gun violence going on.”
And while the memorial march is an opportunity to honour the memory of officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty, it’s also an opportunity for the community to express gratitude for those who step into dangerous situations to protect and serve.
“It’s important for our officers to see the support we receive from the community, people that line the street and acknowledge us and attend the service and we know that they are out there,” Stephenson said. “We know the people in Thunder Bay support us and it’s nice to see.”
