David R. Blair

Medals & Honours: Long Service Medal

Pillar Location: Pillar X, Row 9, Column A

Story: 

I always wanted to be a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police since I was a young boy. I joined the RCMP Aux. Program when I was eighteen and a half years old serving at the Burnaby Detachment. I enlisted into the Force at age 19 years and one month going directly to Regina, Saskatchewan where my training as a Police Officer would begin. It was there where myself and thirty-one others began their training and molded each of us into a team and good friends. In April 1974 our entire Troop graduated and we were posted to different area’s of Canada. I was lucky enough to be posted to Pincher Creek, Alberta and began my Recruit Field Training under the watchful eye of my trainer Cst. John Radvak.  Pincher Creek is a farming/ranching community in South Western Alberta with a First Nations Community. It was an excellent place to learn and understand the culture of the community in particular the Native culture with which I had no experience. Shortly after my six month’s of field training I was transferred to Magrath, Alberta in October 1974 which was a Mormon farming community and had numerous Hutterite Colonies. Again this was totally new to me and allowed to learn and experience another new culture. Magrath Detachment is a two man posting with the Corporal in charge who explained I would work nights and he would work days which lasted for six months before I would see a day shift. I was posted in Magrath for one year when I was transferred to Medicine Hat, Alberta in October 1975 and served on the Highway Patrol Unit. It was a great place to be posted in a large Urban area and it was there I met my wife Krista. In this time period single officers were easy to be transferred and I was again transferred to Rocky Mountain House Detachment in February 1977 which was one of the busiest Detachments in Alberta. The oil industry was booming and we had three First Nation Communities in our area where I continued to learn the ways of being a good Police Officer. In 1978 which was the best year of my life I married Krista. However in 1979 we learned my wife had Cancer and required numerous operations and Chemo Therapy. I was transferred to Devon Municipal Detachment in September 1981 which was close to Edmonton and the nearby Hospitals which she would require. I was then transferred to Edmonton Immigration and Passport in April 1982 which was a plain clothes position and we enforced the Canadian Immigration Act along with the Passport Act.  Krista beat the cancer and with a clean bill of health we were able to a get transferred to a Northern Isolation Posting at Fort Chipewyan in May 1984.  Fort Chipewyan Detachment consisted of two married members and two single members.  Housing was provided in the Police Compound and it was a fly in Posting with only a winter road to Fort Smith, NWT.  Fort Chipewyan was a First Nations Community where boats, snow machines, Bombardier and for wheel drive police vehicles were your patrol vehicles.  When you could not get to other points which were to far to travel by land or water then you would go by helicopter or fixed wing aircraft.  It was a great place to work and live and both Krista an myself loved being there.  In June 1986 our two year posting was completed and we were transferred to Claresholm, Alberta in June 1986 which is in Southern Alberta and is a farming and ranching community.  It was a great friendly community and we made many friends there.  I was promoted to Corporal and transferred to Gleichen, Alberta in June 1989 which had the second largest First Nations Community in Canada.  It was a new chapter in my Policing Career doing not only investigative work but also managing other officers.  May 1993 I completed my four year posting and I was transferred to Okotoks, Alberta which is just south of Calgary where I completed my 28 years of service with the Force retiring in September 2001.  I took a position with the Town of Okotoks as their Chief Bylaw Officer before calling it a career in 2006.

I am blessed to being married to Krista having just passed our forty second year of marriage and having two great sons John and Steven and two excellent grandsons Erich and Issac. I have retired to the Shuswap region of southern British Columbia to live out our dream.