‘She was just lovely’
Fredericton cop killed in shooting remembered for love of giving back
Slain Fredericton Const. Sara Burns remembered as a down-to-earth, caring friend,
A Fredericton police officer killed in Friday’s shootings was a compassionate woman keen on helping her community, a longtime friend said Sunday.
Fiona Williams said she had known Const. Sara Burns for most of her life, but the two only reconnected about six months ago when the officer helped raise funds for Liberty Lane, a local housing centre for women in crisis.
“(She was) one of these people you always feel comfortable around, she was always down to earth,” said Williams, Liberty Lane’s executive director. “Lovely, she was just lovely.”
Williams described Burns as a warm person who talked constantly about her three sons and her love for her job.
Williams said Burns and her husband, Steven, helped raise money for Liberty Lane: Steven and his best friend, Brian Jones, walked from Edmundston, N.B., to Fredericton in June to raise awareness and funds for the organization.
While Burns was too busy with her police work to go on the walk itself, Williams said she worked hard from the side- lines to promote the fundraiser through local events. “That’s not something they could have done without their family’s involvement and support,” Williams said.
Liberty Lane provides sec- ond-stage housing and outreach for women and children fleeing abusive situations.
Burns and Jones raised over $130,000 for the cause, and the Burns family accepted an award through TD Bank’s Customer Appreciation Day for their fundraising efforts, just two weeks before the officer was killed at the age of 43 Friday. The shooting also claimed the lives of fellow officer Const. Robb Costello and civilians Bobbie Lee Wright and Donnie Robichaud.
Burns decided to follow her dream of being a police officer when she was 40.
She attended the Atlantic Police Academy at Holland Col- lege and was hired in Fredericton in 2016.
Burns also held a degree in criminology from St. Thomas University.
In recent months, Williams said Burns expressed a keen interest in mental health and working with youth, which she said is an important quality for police to have. “As a police officer, you’re not counselling people, but you really have to approach every situation differently,” Williams said.
Burns’ family has asked for privacy as they grieve, but said in a statement that Burns loved her job and “went to work each shift committed to serving this great community.”