The incoming Staff Sergeant of the Drumheller RCMP detachment is looking forward to his new posting in the valley.
Staff Sergeant Grant MacDonald was through the valley last week. He will start his new post in August. He has spent 25 years in the RCMP and his most recent posting before coming to Drumheller was in Burns Lake, British Columbia where he served as Staff Sergeant. He began his career in Leduc, so this will be a return to the province.
“This will be my most southern post by far,” MacDonald told The Mail. “It will be interesting, very different.”
He has spent most of his career in Canada North and his family makes their home in the Yukon. He is excited about the recreation possibilities in Drumheller.
“I am so excited because I do a lot of biking and running. I coach, referee and play soccer, so I am very excited about the opportunities,” he said.
Events such as the Gran Fondo, the Dinosaur Valley Marathon and Tough Mudder are events that interest him.
One advantage he says Drumheller has is a wealth of experience in its RCMP ranks.
“Where I am now is almost exclusive, the constables we receive come out of Regina,” he said. “They come as cadets with zero experience and they need the Cadet Field Coaching program, so it takes time to develop.”
He says policing responsibilities in the north are different from what he expects in Drumheller.
“From a policing perspective, I get a sense that a lot more of the reported crime here is property crime. When you do northern policing there is a lot more violent crimes and crimes against people. I see Drumheller being similar to Leduc.”
He adds that alcohol abuse was very rampant in some of the places he has worked during his career.
He looks forward to exploring the area and serving the community.
“One of the great things I enjoy about being in the RCMP is the opportunity to explore this great country, meet new people and learn different cultures, to experience and learn about Canada. Southern Alberta is a part of the country I have never lived. Getting the opportunity to go to some of the small communities you see on a railcar for example, I’ll have an opportunity to see.”
“Personally I joined the RCMP because I was born in a small community…and one of the beautiful things about living in small town Canada is you develop lifetime friendships.”
