Book raising funds by sharing life lessons from an RCMP officer
During 30 years on the job, RCMP Staff Sgt. Peter Garvey felt he had learned a few valuable lessons about life. Before he died at the age of 54 from incurable brain cancer in 2017, Garvey set out to put the lessons he learned through a career working in diverse communities down on paper so that he could share them with his seven grandchildren. The result is Life Lessons From a Red Serge, a book that was written by his sisters Barb Porter and Linda Garvey. Garvey’s career took him to urban and rural communities in eastern Canada, Nunavut and the prairie provinces. Garvey was raised in Wawota and concluded his career in the RCMP’s F Division in Regina.
It was there that he became most heavily involved with one of his passions — working with Search and Rescue Saskatchewan Association of Volunteers (SARSAV). Garvey was heavily involved in training volunteers, as well as conducting searches.
All proceeds from the book will go to SARSAV.
The Moose Jaw Search and Rescue chapter continues to grow and any funds that help support the work of the volunteers is greatly appreciated.
“We get funds from federal only on (Search and Rescue New Initiative Funds) grants for training or equipment and that’s about it. We get the odd fundraising donation on somebody’s bequest. (Garvey) is one. In previous years, we had another RCMP and it was the same thing when he passed away,” said Fern Paulhus, past president and a member of Moose Jaw Search and Rescue for more than 32 years.
Currently, Moose Jaw Search and Rescue has between 30-35 members, but their annual budget is quite modest which means any proceeds that SARSAV earns from sales of Life Lessons From a Red Serge will help local chapters around the province.
“For Moose Jaw, we run anywhere from $2,500 to a $5,000-budget per year to operate on equipment and training,” Paulhus said. “We would like to have more, of course. We would like to have a home to put all of our equipment in. We’ve been using vacant properties that they allow us into, but once they rent it out, we’re out on the street again.”
SARSAV is comprised of 17 search and rescue chapters across the province, with more than 350 professionally trained search and rescue volunteers. SARSAV chapters province a co-ordinated response of qualified search and rescue personnel in support of people who are lost and/or in distress and in the recovery of evidence.
The local search and rescue chapter has experienced some strong growth in recent years.
“This year, we have actually had three new ones just sign up. Last fall we had six there, and the year before we had about another six more (new members),” Paulhus said. “So, it is growing with the younger generation finally looking to plug in and, hopefully, take over someday.
Each new search and rescue volunteer receives extensive training and then needs hours of experience to become a team leader.
“There is a basic eight-hour course and then it’s an additional 40 hours to become what is called a team leader,” Paulhus said. “If a major search happens and volunteers within the community want to help out in the search, this individual will be able to take these volunteers and go out and do a search. Sometimes you could end up with 60 spontaneous searchers and these individuals have to be trained to take them out.” Paulhus is qualified as a team leader, a senior search manager and a mantracker. The local search and rescue volunteers also receive training to become certified and qualified before they take part in various elements that can come into a search like scuba diving, boats, traffic control, snowmobiles or quads.
The book is available in stores in seven Saskatchewan communities but only available in Moose Jaw by purchase online at the RCMP Heritage Centre Gift Store website or through the publishers (mcarverassociates@gmail.com).