Langley kids got a taste of the life of a police officer at the annual RCMP Cadets Camp July 8-10.
Organized by Langley Mounties, auxiliary officers, and staff and volunteers from Community Policing Offices, the event involved 100 kids aged 10 to 12.
The floor of the Langley Events Centre’s arena bowl was the main venue for the day camp, the first year the event has been held there.
The new venue has been a good fit for the event, said Const. Craig Van Herk, one of the officers overseeing events.
The new location has turned out to be a source of free advertising. The LEC is still open to people using the upper level concourse as a walking track, and they’ve been stopping to watch the activity on the stadium floor.
“We’ve had people stopping by to ask about it, and they can’t wait for their kids to turn 12,†said Van Herk.
Back at the event this year was Const. Mark Peterse, who spent two years as a Langley RCMP Auxiliary officer. Last year Peterse headed off to the RCMP’s training centre, and he has returned to the Lower Mainland as a general duty officer. Peterse, now assigned to the Surrey detachment, has seen his own daughter go through the Cadet Camp in the past, he said.
Peterse oversaw a group of cadets examining a “crime scene†complete with clues scattered around.
The cadets also did some drill marching – something Mounties learn during their basic training – met officers on horseback and mounted on motorcycles, and got to interact with members of the Emergency Response Team and see some of the equipment they work with.