Central Alberta Women’s Outreach Society and Alberta Justice were recognized this week for their tremendous collaborative work with the Red Deer RCMP.
Kimberly Haugen of Central Alberta Women’s Outreach Society and Crown Prosecutor Brittany Ashmore were recognized for their ongoing work with police locally.
“It’s so important to recognize the partners that we have for the work that they do, because so often they are in the background,” said Insp. Gerald Grobmeier of the Red Deer detachment.
”It’s also to show that safety in any community is so much broader in perspective than just policing – we are only one part.
“But there are so many different agencies, so many different groups, so many different individuals that all comprise community safety.
“So this is just a small way for us to say thank you and bring them to the forefront so that other people can realize the good work that they do,” he said.
Grobmeier said the members of the detachment couldn’t do the work that they do without the support from these organizations.
“When you talk about youth intervention and the partnership we have with the Crown here – if we didn’t have Brittany Ashmore onboard with us, we would not be able to intervene earlier with these children and help to divert them from the court process,” he explained.
“Regarding domestic violence, which is such a large topic in society not just in Red Deer but throughout North America for sure. To have social workers who are embedded right here in our detachment working with us and giving the aid to these victims and families…we can provide a wrap-around service that before we wouldn’t have been able to do,” he said.
“I’d like everyone to know that the RCMP is fully invested in these partnerships and collaborations,” he said. “And these groups are making Red Deer safe everyday.”
Ashmore said that local police help with providing background and context on many court situations involving youth which is an enormous help in providing courts with a bigger picture of what’s going on in a young person’s life.
“We can then divert appropriately to deal with the underlying circumstances that are really causing this young person to come before us in the criminal justice system,” she said.
“Hopefully, if the underlying issues are addressed, we won’t see them again on our side of it.”
Haugen said that she was very honoured by the recognition.
“I’m very thankful that the RCMP has a collaboration with The Outreach Centre,” she said.
“This is a way for me to learn from the RCMP, and I learn everyday,” she explained.
“So it’s a learning experience, and it’s an opportunity for me to help others that are experiencing family violence or domestic violence to find those skills to move forward,” she said.
“It’s a positive working relationship and I hope it continues on so we can use each other’s resources to better assist families and individuals.”
