WATER VALLEY - About 40 Water Valley residents attended a recent information session put on by the Olds and District Rural Crime Watch association at the local community hall, with participants voicing concerns mostly about property crime in the area.
The association works with local police and other stakeholders to address crime issues, operating a reporting and call-out system.
The Water Valley meeting was the second recent such meeting held in the district, the first being in Cremona earlier this month. About 60 people attended that meeting.
Association past president Gerald Ingeveld says organizers were happy with the public turnout and participation at the Water Valley meeting.
“The property thefts are the big thing out there,” said Ingeveld. “Most people had a story or two to tell about something (crime) that had happened to them or their neighbours over the past few years in the community.”
The meeting saw association members provide information on crime prevention. There was also a special speaker from the RCMP.
“We had Staff Sgt. Chad Fournier, the detachment commander from Didsbury RCMP, come out and give us a lot of good information about the special crime units they are using and some of the successes they are having,” he said.
The dedicated police units are being used to target repeat criminals and track criminal activities in rural areas.
Ingeveld says a number of guests at the Water Valley meeting chose to join the association, either for the first time or as renewals.
“We had quite a few members in the past but over the past decade or so they haven’t been signing up again,” he said. “I think about half the people who signed up were members in the past. It was a good gathering.”
Mountain View County councillor and former police officer Greg Harris also attended the Water Valley meeting. He called it a success and was encouraged by the input of local residents.
Displaying rural crime watch signage on a property can help discourage criminals from targeting that location, he said.
During the Cremona open house, association president Jason Leach said local area residents can help fight crime by reporting suspicious activities.
“We are encouraging them to report anything they see that is suspicious to the RCMP and we are encouraging them to get memberships,” said Leach.
“Rural crime brings to mind agriculture and family farms, sparsely populated areas and a sense of community where the people know one another and act accordingly. Unfortunately, fewer people in rural areas leaves open various opportunities for criminal elements.
“While rural areas have less crime than their urban counterparts, they also have more crime than they did in the past, and their crime problems are serious.”
The association, which covers all of Mountain View County, also hosted a provincial rural crime association Zone 2 meeting in council chambers on July 6.
The next association meeting is July 31, also in council chambers. See more on the association’s website and Facebook page.
