Immediately following our CPCA ATS in Niagara Falls, my wife Sheryl and I were flown to Calgary and driven to the beautiful resort of Kananaskis Village. Merle Doherty (retired police officer now chaplain and Manager of the Billy Graham Rapid Response Team) asked Sheryl & I and another couple to present during the two-day event. The keynote speaker was Naomi Paget - a Crisis Interventionist and Chaplain with the FBI and Red Cross in Texas. Naomi set the stage for all of us to follow from her amazing initial presentation – “Your Best Backup.”
The Retreat was attended by close to 50 couples with one or both serving as police officers in western Canada. We got to know and pray with several couples mostly serving either Calgary PS or Edmonton PS. The very informative sessions were preceded by worship led by a team from a church in Calgary. Everything about the retreat was exceptional: the worship, the presentations, the buffets, the accommodations, the host chaplain team of Merle (top photo), Holly, Frank, and Jerry, and the one-on-one opportunities to interact with couples. There was free time which we spent hiking alongside a mountain and taking in the beauty of God's creation. I also had the opportunity to share during my presentation about the CPCA which led to some private conversations with police officers who are now exploring the possibility of serving in a dual role within their Service - police officer and police chaplain.
I share all this to segue to a future opportunity for Christian police officers and their spouses to gather together for a similar formated event in eastern Canada. The next Law Enforcement Appreciation Retreat will take place at the Hockley Valley Resort in southern Ontario on March 26-27, 2023. We will be getting together again with the other wonderful couple who shared (RCMP Cst Denzil Morey and his wife Kim from Fort McMurray), and FBI Chaplain Naomi Paget to share about "Your Best Backup" with eastern police officers and their spouses. Here is a link with more details regarding the event. Consider passing the link along to married Christian police officers who may be in need of a time of refreshing and encouragement in their marriage. My wife and I definitely left the event feeling refreshed and energized.
