CORNWALL, Ontario – Retirees of the Cornwall Community Police Service were honoured Monday morning with the unveiling of the new Retiree Wall of Honour, proudly displayed in the entrance way of the police station.
The wall features 129 names of retired personnel, dating back to 1957 and including those who passed away while still employed with the service.
Josee Lalonde initiated the Retiree Wall project and has been a dispatcher with the police service for 17 years. In 2012, she realized there was nothing in place to acknowledge past members for their lifetime commitment to the service.
“It was then I had a vision to create something to honour those who spend their lives serving this community, something that shows our sincere gratitude,” said Lalonde.
A handpicked committee of seven people, including Lalonde, then set to work finding funding and digging into records, researching retirees and those eligible for the wall. Since records weren’t always kept on computers, it was a labourious task to make sure they included the correct information.
Chair of The Cornwall Police Services Board, Coun. Andre Rivette, was at the unveiling and said: “This committee really hit the nail right on the head and gave the people and the retirees exactly what they felt was needed.”
Many retirees in attendance echoed Rivette’s sentiments. Doug Masson retired from the police service in 1995. He expressed “It’s good to be recognized for our service and I personally really appreciate it.”
Lalonde noted that while every effort was made to include anyone who had retired since 1957, some files could have been lost in the decades since, just as some badge numbers were not able to be located. She encourages anyone with any information that could add a deserving service member to the wall to come forward.
A history of the Cornwall Police Service beginning in 1784 is also included on the wall, noting that The Cornwall City Police Department was formed on Jan. 1, 1957 after an amalgamation of two police forces in Cornwall and the United Counties.
