Angela McArthur's day-camp at White Bear First Nation, continues to provide fun activities for kids aged six to 12. Recently she visited the Carlyle detachment of the RCMP and asked if they could do something for the kids. During her meeting with Staff Sgt. Harrison, they came up with the idea of sending an officer to the camp. The result was a three-hour visit to the day-camp by Constable Wilkinson, who arrived one afternoon in his police car.
"He was excellent with the kids." McArthur said. "I mean, we had 26 of them there, and he was so patient with them all, and they all enjoyed it. He took them out to the police car, and turned on the sirens and the lights, he let them talk on the intercom and play in the back seat and the front seat."
Beyond getting to play in the police cruiser, there were also some serious life-lessons presented to the children. Wilkinson spoke about the need for kids staying safe, and he provided each of the youngsters with a child-find information package for their parents, complete with their hand prints on them.
"He also spoke about staying in education" McArthur said. "He said all they needed was grade 12 to get into the RCMP, and you should have seen the looks on their faces. It was awesome!"
McArthur hopes that more opportunities can be created for positive interaction between the young people at White Bear and the local police. Certainly this is echoed by Staff Sgt. Harrison who said, "I hope we can do more there."
Events like this build bridges and create greater communication and understanding. In some communities, positive interaction can start the healing process where relations have been challenged in the past. But most of all, when young people are exposed to good ideas, and encouraged to be the best they can be, then ultimately it is those young folks who benefit from the event, and that can only be a good thing.
