For more than 30 years Mountain View County has been protected by a dedicated group of special eyes and ears.
In 2013, this group, comprised of about 300 volunteer members, remains a valued partner in an ongoing fight against rural crime with RCMP detachments in Olds, Didsbury and Sundre.
The Olds Rural Crime Watch (ORCW) organization was formed in 1981. It is one administrative body to represent rural citizens within the Olds, Didsbury and Sundre RCMP detachments.
Next month the ORCW will have the opportunity to show the rest of the province how responsible and determined citizen engagement can make a difference in rural crime prevention when it hosts the annual Alberta Provincial Crime Watch Annual General Meeting and Symposium. The three-day event, which is expected to attract about 300 citizens from across the province, will be held at the Olds Legion on Feb. 8 and 10, and at the Olds College Alumni Centre on Feb. 9. It is the first time since 2004 Olds has hosted the event. The theme of this year's conference is 5Ps of Crime Prevention ñ Property, Participation, Preparation, Prevention and Protection.
The symposium will feature guest speakers who will inform participants on new initiatives with Safe Communities Alberta, Crime Stoppers and the Stop Bully Program.
"Our biggest challenge for this is the lack of accommodations in the region. We are competing against hockey tournaments this time of year,î said Judy Schlichenmayer, secretary and treasurer for ORCW.
She has been on the organization's executive since 1996. She said the organization has made the Olds and area rural community safer. The ORCW relies on a phone, fax and email system to broadcast issues of concern, including criminal activity such as break and enters, thefts, mailbox vandalism, grow operations, trespassing and poaching.
The organization holds monthly meetings to address these issues, as well as bringing in speakers to offer crime prevention tips. It also works closely with the RCMP detachments which have dedicated liaison officers to work with ORCW members.
Although the group has created a solid organizational structure over the past three decades to fight crime it is still an ongoing battle that must be fought with vigilance and perseverance.
"There is always vehicle thefts and our association can be proud we've had a lot of recovery of vehicles through Crime Stoppers and citizen tips,î said Schlichenmayer. "We also had several break and enters last year. Some of them were worrisome as citizens were home at the time.î
Over the past few years the organization has also been dealing with the increasing problem of copper wire theft, and last year encountered an issue that was new to the region ñ cow-calf thefts.
"It is the first time we had heard about it,î said Schlichenmayer.
The ongoing efforts by the ORCW to make the region's rural community safer is receiving accolades from the RCMP.
"It is an excellent organization that allows the RCMP to discuss information to the rural community concerning property crimes, as well as the information we get when members come across suspicious persons or vehicles. It is important to keep the lines of communications open between the rural community and the police,î said Didsbury RCMP Cpl. Warren Wright. "They have an enhanced and informed awareness of crime in the community. They are the extra eyes and ears.î
For more information on ORCW visit www.oldsruralcrimewatch.ca or call 403-556-8846. For further information on next month's annual provincial conference visit www.ruralcrimewatch.ab.ca, or call 403-556-8846.
