P.A. officers killed on duty remembered with plaques

PRINCE ALBERT The Prince Albert RCMP have memorialized four local officers killed in the line of duty.

The detachment dedicated the memorials during a private ceremony on Aug. 10. F Division air services did a ceremonial flyby while Prince Albert Pipes and Drums Band played Amazing Grace.

The ceremony was held to coincide with the 128th anniversary of the death of Sgt. Montgomery of the North West Mounted Police, who died in 1890 after falling from his horse in Prince Albert. The memorials also remember Sgt. Robert Schrader and Const. Douglas Anson, who were shot and killed while on duty investigating a domestic dispute near Macdowall on Oct. 9, 1970. The fourth plaque is dedicated to Const. Roy Karwaski, who died from internal injuries from a police car crash in P.A. on May 24, 1980.

About 25 members of Schrader’s family who still live in Saskatchewan were in attendance, including his children and grandchildren.

Cpl. David Chamberlain, who organized the ceremony, said the plaques give the detachment an opportunity to honour the fallen.

“It’s a chance for us to pay tribute to those who have fallen before us,” he said. “Having them displayed on memorials also allows the public to come pay respect to members that may have been killed over the years.”

The plaques are mounted around the flagpole at the 15th Street NW location, two on each side. They ’ve been in development for about a year. Chamberlain said he took some inspiration from his time serving in the military.