Troop 14 73/74

  Cpl’s Piche; Moffatt; Nichols; Healy; McVie; Legal; Kembel; St. Charles; Kline; Hale; and Anderson.  Their instruction will be forever engrained in our minds, as it enabled us to do our jobs in such a manner that would allow our safe return to our families at the end of the shift. Training like most educational endeavors can be trying especially when spread over a 6-month time period.  Added to this, our curriculum was fast-paced and demanding as our careers would be in the not-too-distant future. Our Troop councilor, Cpl Steve Lozinski, and his wife Marg were wonderful at being themselves and keeping us grounded and providing us counseling and reassurance when and as needed.        

 

Some of the training course introductions were quite creative.  For example, in swimming class on day one; the entire Troop was lined up along the edge of the pool for a drill to identify the non-swimmers.  Cpl McVie explained, that when your name was called you would step forward, jump into the pool, and swim across to the opposite side.  While explaining this process, one of his assistant instructors entered the pool area carrying a 20 ft pole with a boxing glove attached to one end.  The pole and boxing glove device were specifically designed to assist any recruit that required assistance getting into the water.   Within minutes it was quickly determined that Troop 14 had 3 non-swimmers and absolutely no one required any assistance entering the water.  Most of our Troop obtained their Bronze Medallion in lifesaving prior to graduation.  Another less intrusive training experience was our first RCMP haircut.  As recruits, we all knew it was compulsory and that it was going to be severely short, but until you experience it, along with the initial visual shock of not recognizing yourself in the mirror, it’s just one of those things you won’t soon forget.  In a couple of weeks, your facial tan lines realigned themselves and you soon discover everyone in Depot had the same hairstyle. 

 

As a recruit you quickly learned that you weren’t allowed to walk around Depot, you had to run until the Troop earned its marching orders.  Our high brown boots played a key role in marching and were pretty much the order of dress in Depot.  The leather boots came pebbled covered which required ironing to create a smooth flat surface for polishing.  This entire process was labor-intensive, and we spent countless hours polishing our boots to mirror finish.

 

The Troop was gaining momentum as a unified group, and we finally figured out how to use cadence as a timing mechanism to keep the entire Troop in step during drill class.  It took us approximately 3 months before the Troop finally received its marching orders.  In the beginning, cadence was almost mystical as it was very hard to accomplish especially when it involved 32 recruits and 64 individual feet.  Success finally came to our Troop during one of our drill classes and we were instantly hooked on that rhythmic foot-pounding beat of 120 steps per minute.    We can assure you our first drill class in 32 degrees Celsius heat at the converted horse barn/hockey arena was anything but marching.  Even under the masterful direction of Cpl Piche, drill presented some challenges, even some that were preordained by the good Corporal.  We all have our own individual recollections of various antics in Drill class, but one thing is for certain, Cpl Piche’s uniform dress and boots were impeccable, and he was our dress and deportment role model both in and out of uniform.    

 

On Feb 25, 1974, Troop 14 gathered with family and friends to celebrate our graduation from Depot Division and our entrance into the annals of RCMP history.  The graduation festivities began in the morning with demonstrations in swimming, physical fitness, and self-defense. After lunch, we provided our guests with a drill demonstration and were presented with our badges.  The evening activities began with a regimental-style dinner and concluded with a dance in the drill hall. Graduation was the pinnacle training event for Troop 14. The day after we packed up our clothes and memories of the past 6 months, said our goodbyes and headed out across Canada to our first postings.

 

Our training journey began with the list of 32 original Recruits.  Like most Troops, ours was impacted by life’s reality in the form of attritions such as illness, injuries, along with, career path changes. Troop “14” 1973/74 completed training with 29 graduates.  There will never be another Troop 14 like ours. We must hold on to those precious moments that have become our special memories in time as they are truly sacred to us.

 

On January 8^th1979, Cst. Bruce Davis paid the ultimate sacrifice. While on duty he died as a result of a collision between his police car and a Canadian National freight train at Portage la Prairie, Manitoba.   He was 25 years old, recently married with no children.

 

 On April 23, 1991, Cst. Terry Fehr attended a ranch in the Consul Saskatchewan Detachment area,  where he was investigating a highway traffic complaint. Without warning, Cst. Fehr faced a rancher who ended up shooting him in the hip with a high-powered rifle.  Terry managed to return fire with his service revolver and escaped by crawling back to his police car which he drove to a neighboring ranch.  There, he was provided first aid, and eventually transported to a hospital. Terry survived his injuries and retired after 32 years of service from the RCMP in 2006.        

                        Obituaries for Troop 14 73/74 Members

Effective 2022/04/26

 

Reg #	Name	Hometown	Date of Passing	Honor Roll
30791	Davis, LB	Gander NL	1979-01-08	158
30779	Garbolinski, AN	Beausejour MB	2011-12-22
30793	Flieger, BW	Sussex NB	2021-01-26
30775	McCabe, MJ	North Bay ON	2021-02-04

 

Members  of Troop 14 73/74 Service

Reg #	Name	Home Town	Date Sworn In	Location of Oath	First Posting	Years Service
30400	Livingston DN	QE	25-04-1973		Montmagny, QE	Career Change
30535	Gendron JDS	QE	06-06-1973		Montmagny, QE	33 years
30538	Dorion JTB	QE	06-06-1973		Montmagny, QE	Career Change
30768	Ryan DL	Dartmouth, NS	07-08-1973	Halifax, NS	Vermillion, AB	33 years
30769	MacBride SB	Canning, NS	07-08-1973	Halifax, NS	Melfort SK	8 years
30771	Nastiuk JA	Chatham, ON	14-08-1973	London, ON	High Prairie, AB	32 years
30772	Wood GL	Orillia, Ont	14-08-1973	London, ON		Career Change
30773	Beck RG	Allan, SK	13-08-1973	Regina, SK	Hanna, AB	34 Years
30774	Medernach DM	Regina, SK	13-08-1973	Regina, SK	Red Water, AB	12 years
30775	McCabe MJ	North Bay, ON	13-08-1973	Ottawa, ON	Outlook, SK	24 years
30776	Hunt HR	Yorkton, SK	13-08-1973	Regina, SK	Cochrane, AB	29 years
30777	Peters RJ	North Battleford,SK	13-08-1973			Career Change
30778	Fehr TC	Edmonton, AB	13-08-1973	Edmonton,AB	Big River, SK	33 years
30779	Garbolinski AN	Beausejour, MB	13-08-1973	Winnipeg, MB		7 years
30780	Morrison JT	Winnipeg, MB	13-08-1973	Winnipeg, MB	Two Hills, AB	33 years
30781	Gibbons RM	Halifax, NS	13-08-1973	Halifax, NS	Assinibola, SK	39 years
30782	Forbes TD	Hammonds Plains, NS	13-08-1973	Halifax, NS	Fisher Branch, MB	35 years
30783	Wood VC	Liverpool, NS	13-08-1973	Halifax, NS	Glace Bay, NS	37 years
30784	Johnson BG	Lindsay, ON	13-08-1973	Toronto, ON	Regina, SK	2 years
30785	Lieverse ACJ	Beaverlodge, AB	13-08-1973	Peace River, AB	Unity, SK	26 years
30786	Lester GA	Burnaby, BC	13-08-1973	Burnaby, BC	Bashaw, AB
30787	Warawa RJ		13-08-1973			Career Change
30788	Carriere RN	100 Mile House, BC	13-08-1973	Kamloops, BC	Killah, AB	32 years
30789	McDougall AS	Kirkland Lake, ON	14-08-1973	North Bay, ON	Nipawin, SK	22 years
30790	Slaney KA	St. Lawrence NF	14-08-1973	St. Johns, NL	Newcastle, NB	33 years
30791	Davis LB	Gander, NL	14-08-1973	St. Johns, NL	Selkirk, MB	6 years
30792	Fournier JPRG	Thetford Mines, PQ	15-08-1973	Montreal, PQ	Montreal, PQ	38 years
30793	Fleger BW	Sussex,NB	15-08-1973	Fredericton, NB	Ottawa, ON	37 years
30794	Calder VB	Oromocto, NB	15-08-1973	Fredericton, NB	Moosomin, SK	12 years
30795	Dunlop RP	Fernie, BC	15-08-1973	Fernie, BC	Lac La Biche, AB	31 years
30796	Flight RD	Toronto, ON	15-08-1973	Toronto, ON	Merritt, BC	11 years
30797	LaFerriere JOM	Welland, ON	15-08-1973	Toronto, ON	Ottawa, ON	35 years
30798	Monteith, DG	Elmvale, ON	15-08-1973	Toronto, ON	Assumption, AB	37 years
30799	Brolund AW	Flin Flon, MB	15-08-1973	North Vancouver, BC	Maple Creek, SK	35 years
30800	Beerda GL	Smithers, BC	15-08-1973	Ptrince George, BC	Slave Lake, AB	5 years