 Good morning. Welcome family and friends, currently serving members of the Vancouver Police Department and our 20 newest members of the VPD from class 155. There are many special events that I attend as Chief of the VPD, but none more important than swearing in of new members of the VPD. It's an important day for the recruits, it's an important day for the families, and it's an important day for our organization. It's a big day that you're always going to remember, and we do it here in a place of honor where we remember the 16 fallen officers who have gone before us. Today you're not just being sworn in as police officers, you're being sworn in as Vancouver police officers. And we have a very proud history in this organization, dating back 131 years since 1886 policing this rural class city. You represent part of that history now, but also you represent our future, because the officers standing before you today won't be retiring until probably the range of about 2047 to 2050. So it's important that I plan for the future, but on a personal note, I don't know what I'll be doing in 2050, but I want some good people to be able to look after me. But this day will always stay with you, and being a member of the Vancouver Police Department will stay with you. Today I presented you with your badge, and I know you're going to take the time later to look at your badge. It's very exciting. You're going to show your family and friends and your spouses or boyfriends or girlfriends, whatever the situation may be, and look at it in the mirror and all that kind of stuff. It's very cool, but you have to remember that with that badge comes a great responsibility. You will have certain powers that regular people in society do not have, including the lawful use of force in certain circumstances. But it's not like television, and in fact, police officers use force in a very small number of cases. In the vast majority of cases, we resolve through good interpersonal skills. And one of the most important things to understand early on in your career is that intersection between law enforcement, but I like to point out, law enforcement is a part of what we do, but really our broader mandate is public safety, and that's what we do for this city. But the intersection between public safety and social issues is so important, because you'll be dealing with people that have mental health issues, people that are homeless, people that have poverty issues or addiction issues, and when we come into situations, we calm things down, we de-escalate, and we restore order to tumultuous situations, and we're problem solvers. I will guarantee you that we're going to put you in difficult situations, and you're going to deal with people from all walks of life, from different backgrounds, and you're going to deal with people that are less fortunate than your own upbringing. All at the same while, you will fall under a lot of scrutiny, which is the nature of police work. However, two simple rules that I've always lived my career by is that if you work hard and you treat people with respect, it will get you a long way in life. And it's always important to remember as a police officer, what you do matters. You really can make a difference in people's lives, and you will see that throughout your career. Our values that were mentioned earlier, of integrity, compassion, accountability, respect, and excellence. I'm just going to mention compassion for a sec, because when you're dealing with people out in society, no matter what their lot in life is, and dealing with people that are less fortunate, it's always the mark of a good person how you treat somebody that is less fortunate than yourselves. That just doesn't go to the general public. It also implies internally how we treat each other and the importance of making sure that we have a healthy workplace here at VPD. Every day I see great stories that our officers are doing out on the front lines and our civilian staff and all the great work that's happening at the Vancouver Police Department that is not often reported in the media. The dedication, the courage, the thoughtfulness that our officers have every day when they're out on the front lines. And these officers that you're standing with today, your fellow academy mates, develop such a strong bond with them that will last with you your entire career. And it doesn't matter what you go on to do in your career. If you're a patrol officer, a detective, if you work undercover, in our emergency response team, you ride a motorcycle, you have a police dog, you become a supervisor one day, doesn't matter. 25 or 30 years down the road, when you run into the same group of people that you're standing here with today, you will always have that special bond from this time in your life that you share together. And you're about to embark on a ride in the front seat of the roller coaster of life. You will, throughout your career, save people's lives. You will arrest dangerous criminals. You will arrest bank robbers, sexual predators. You'll rescue women from domestic violence. You'll be involved in police pursuits. And you will put yourself in harm's way to protect a member of the public or a fellow officer that you don't even know. And these people standing around you in the room or up above other people in this building that you haven't met yet will do the same for you and come to your assistance when you need it. Because the police officers, when other people are running away from trouble, you're running into it to restore peace and order and protect people's lives. But it's not just those criminal incidents that you're going to be dealing with. You're going to be dealing with other issues. You're going to be dealing with distraught parents after their child has gone missing and their frantic to find their four-year-old. You'll be dealing with troubled youth. And sometimes the answer to that troubled youth is to arrest that person and take them to jail. But in many cases when you're dealing with a troubled youth and you're looking at the totality, the circumstances, there may be other ways to help that person through the situation. And those are the judgment calls you'll make as a police officer. You'll be dealing with Alzheimer's patients, elderly people who have wandered away, are lost, confused, and scared, and you're going to come to their aid and assist them and help them out in their time of need. You're going to be standing on the edge of a bridge with a suicidal person that's ready to jump and contemplating taking their life. And at those particular moments of crisis, you are the only person that people have to turn to. And the impact that you will have on people's lives is significant, and you will make a huge difference. And some of the new challenges that we're facing today, the police officers of a generation ago never had to face, counter-terrorism, national security issues, fentanyl, nobody had even heard of fentanyl 10 years ago. Cyber crime was something that didn't exist 20 years ago. These are things that we deal with now on a regular basis. There are huge challenges for the police department, but I will tell you that we're going to tackle those issues head-on. We're not going to shy away from them. Our police officers at VPD are well-trained. They're fit. They're intelligent. And we're going to take on these issues. We're not going to let the public down because that's what they expect of us. The men and women standing before you are the sons and daughters of Canada who are on the front lines of this country keeping people safe. This really is the best job in the world. It is a calling. And those of you standing up here know what I'm talking about. It's something you've worked towards for many, many years in many cases. And it's something that, well, it's a serious business that we do. We have a lot of fun doing it, and you're going to have an amazing career. It's an important week for me and my career, and that 30 years ago this month in September of 1987, I was born in as a Vancouver police officer. And I'll tell you that 30 years later, I still love every minute of it. And as chief, my promise to you is that I will provide them leadership, not only as the chief, but on the front lines we have outstanding sergeants, field trainers, squad mates they're going to be working with that will keep them on a good path. We'll provide them with excellent training, equipment, and make sure that they're successful throughout their careers. You as family members are now part of the VPD family as well. I'm sure you were impressed with the qualifications that these young officers have, their education, their volunteer experience, community service, language skills that they have, the athletic ability of them, the diversity. Some of them were special municipal constables, the military service, the variety of backgrounds that make this such a rich class of skills and abilities that we're bringing into this police department. Ladies and gentlemen, congratulations to the newest members of PLOS 155.