Canine Unit fetches Top Dog award
20-Sep-2017
The Edmonton Police Service’s Canine Unit hosted the 2017 Canadian Police Canine Association Trials in celebration of their unit’s 50th year within EPS and as celebration for EPS’ 125th anniversary.
Our Canine Unit represented our Service to the utmost respect. Our members spent exhaustive amounts of time and effort to put on a perfect weekend for all competitors and the public, and they outdid themselves. It was a weekend for handlers to learn from one another and for the public to see what our members, both two and four-legged, do every single day to keep our cities safe.
Our five teams were remarkable and truly proved how strong our training and skills are, but it reinforced the importance of this special partnership our Canine members have with PSDs. It is our handlers' and PSDs’ teamwork and dedication to their craft that make our Service worthy of such achievements as Top Dog. Congratulations to all five teams for your hard work through the weekend’s difficult competitions.
Some may say we had the home advantage, but for the third year in a row, a member from our unit took the Top Dog award - Constable Nick Leachman and PSD Finn. Three out of our five teams placed in the Top 5 overall!
Cst. Tony Costa & PSD Amok
#4 Evidence Search
#2 Building Search
#2 Compound Search
Cst. Lauren Croxford & PSD Bender
#4 Agility
Cst. Bryan Langevin & PSD Fallon
#1 Agility
#3 Building Search
#5 Overall
Cst. Ryan Busby & PSD Jagger:
#1 Obedience
#2 Agility
#3 Compound Search
#2 Apprehension
#3 Overall
Cst. Nick Leachman & PSD Finn:
#3 Obedience
#3 Agility
#5 Apprehension
#4 Tracking
#1 Overall
Constable Chris Gallagher named Kiwanis Top Cop 2016
02-March-2017
A father of twin girls, Cst. Chris Gallagher knows the importance a great mentor and role model can have in a young person’s life. Known to his players as “Coach Galley,” he has been coaching minor hockey, basketball and Special Olympics athletes for more than a decade.
Cst. Gallagher currently coaches the St. Albert SLAM Bantam girls basketball team, as well as St. Albert Minor Hockey Association’s Bantam and Peewee girls teams. While already coaching his daughters’ basketball and hockey teams, Galley also volunteered to coach the Bantam hockey team when he found out they were in danger of folding without a head coach. According to one of his many nomination letters, “On a typical weekend, Galley is routinely attending three games or practices each day, often travelling out of town for tournaments. Not surprisingly, Galley’s dedication and passion for the game has rubbed off on his players. Both of his teams are currently undefeated.”
Galley has also volunteered with Special Olympics for more than 15 years, going far beyond the role of coaching to organize tournaments, barbeques and matches between Special Olympics athletes and police members. He also lends his support to the annual Special Olympics fundraiser, “Free Our Finest.”
In addition to his coaching efforts, Cst. Gallagher gives school presentations during Career Days, teaches grade 6 science students about evidence and investigations, and has spoken on a panel at the Canadian Down Syndrome Conference.
An 11-year member of the EPS, Cst. Gallagher currently works in the Recruit Training Unit, where he draws on his talents and long experience as a coach to bring out the best in his recruits.
Cst. Gallagher was selected Top Cop for his exceptional volunteer commitment to coaching minor hockey, basketball and Special Olympics athletes for more than a decade.