SUNDRE – The local RCMP detachment’s interim commander said she’s looking forward to serving the community and surrounding area for the foreseeable future until the position is permanently filled.
Cpl. Courtney Harding, who transferred to the Olds RCMP department in 2018 following previous postings in Hinton and Red Deer City after starting her career as a Mountie in 2006 in Maskwacis, brings with her more than 18 years of experience in policing.
“There’s a mixture of things that led me to want to be a police officer,” Harding told the Albertan on June 11 during an interview at the detachment when asked what initially led her down this path.
“But I definitely decided when I was 10 years old,” she said.
As a member of a Girl Guide group in the Dickson area at the time, she recalled a fateful field trip to the Innisfail RCMP detachment that would ultimately put her ambitions into motion.
“I just walked out of the detachment that day and said, ‘That’s what I’m going to be when I grow up,’” she said, later adding the experience “just spoke to me.”
Although born in Calgary, she was largely raised in a rural setting in the Raven area and graduated from Spruce View School.
“I’m pretty much about as close to home as you can get right now, so I’m pretty fortunate,” she said, adding that experience also provided her with beneficial insight.
“I do understand the people, the culture of the community, the dynamics.”
Growing up with a single mom who had three children to look after was itself often challenging, and Harding perhaps grew up faster than most kids.
“There was some elements of domestic violence in her previous relationships,” she said about her mom.
“It is something that touched me in a profound way as a child,” she said.
“I just knew instantly that my job when I grew up, I was meant to help people … who might’ve gone through some of the challenges that I went through as a child.”
While cases of domestic violence statistically speaking tend to affect women the most, that’s not always exclusively the case.
“It’s not just isolated towards women. Certainly there’s men who are victims of domestic violence as well,” she said.
“So I wanted to make sure that I could use my experiences to try and help other people, regardless of gender or family status or whatever the case is.
“Domestic situations are such a large part of what we do in policing. So, it certainly is beneficial that I have that experience.”
Throughout her career, her own personal experience with domestic issues set her up with “a greater understanding of challenging dynamics around families” and has on occasion proven invaluable, although the majority of her work has usually involved general duty policing, she said.
“I do have some unique experience in relation to domestic violence and child abuse, and that would stem from my work on the reserve,” she said, adding, “I do consider that some of the most challenging, but rewarding, work of my career to date.”
Currently assisting the Sundre detachment on an interim basis “for the foreseeable future,” she said there is no immediate timeline as to when the position might be filled permanently after the departures of sergeants Trent Sperlie and Randy Poon.
“For the time being, I am happy to be here assisting in whatever way I can for as long as I’m needed,” she said.
Living in Olds with her husband and kids offers a relatively short but scenic drive into town.
“Sundre’s a beautiful community, it’s a great detachment here – it’s a really good group of members and I am super impressed with their enthusiasm and work ethic,” she added.
Having started to help out at the Sundre detachment earlier in May, Harding said she looks forward to further becoming familiarized with the community.
“My priority right now is going to be getting to know the community,” she said.
“I know rural crime has been a huge concern in most communities in Alberta. Certainly Sundre would be no exception."
Following in her predecessors’ footsteps, Harding intends to keep open the lines of communication with organizations such as Rural Crime Watch, and the corporal also aims to make herself available to chat with anyone who is so inclined.
“I’m more than willing to meet with anybody," she said.
