HEROES IN LIFE, NOT DEATH
On August 12th, 1998, Waterloo Regional Police Constable David Nicholson lost his life while trying to recover the body of a child who drowned in the Grand River at the Parkhill Dam in Cambridge, Ontario.
In expressing their appreciation and gratitude to family and friends, Mrs. Wendy Nicholson and sons Mitch, Reid and Josh stated in part, “…Dave’s death has been painful and devastating. He was our hero in life, not death. Our memories of him are rich and immeasurable, filling our hearts with both deep joy and profound pain…”
Wendy Nicholson’s words are the inspiration for the inscription on the Ontario Police Memorial.
The pewter pin replicates the Ontario Police Memorial’s Wall of Honour. The badge represents the police officer’s authority, and the trillium, the official flower of the Province of Ontario. Family members of the Honour Roll officers will have a white trillium on their pin.
The Ontario Police Memorial Pin has been approved for uniform use by the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police as follows:
1. On the day that a police officer is killed in the line of duty, until sundown on the day of the officer’s funeral.
2. During the Ontario Police Memorial Day, the first Sunday in May.
3. During the Canadian Police/Peace Officer’s Memorial Day on the last Sunday of September.
The Ontario Police Memorial Pin can be ordered online at Memorial Pins.
Proceeds from the sale of pins are used to assist in the funding of the yearly Ceremony of Remembrance.
