June 26, 2023

Grey Highlands and its Police Services Board honour two local OPP officers

Photo: At left - Grey Highlands Police Services Board Chair Lynn Silverton; OPP Staff Sgt Debra Anderson - recipient. At right - OPP Constable Craig O'Neill - recipient, OPP Inspector, Grey Bruce Detachment Commander Paul Richardson

BY JOHN BUTLER — Two Grey Highlands-based OPP officers — one of them, a seasoned veteran of the force and the other, a relative rookie — received this year’s Officer of the Year Awards from the five-member Grey Highlands Police Services Board, presented to them at the June 21 Grey Highlands Council meeting by Lynn Silverton, Chair of the Police Services Board. The recipients, Staff Sergeant Debra Anderson and Police Constable Craig O'Neill, were accompanied by family and friends who witnessed the recognition of their achievements.

The OPP provides police services in many communities in Grey and Bruce counties on a contractual basis with municipalities in these counties, under the supervision of a Police Services Board for each municipality.

In announcing these recipients, the Municipality of Grey Highlands showed the breadth of police talent and achievement that lead to an Officer of the Year Award:

“Staff Sergeant Debra Anderson was recognized for her long-standing commitment, dedication to public safety, and ability to lead others with a positive attitude. She has a strong passion for helping people, which has been an inspiration to many officers who have worked under her leadership. Provincial Constable Craig O'Neill was recognized for his hard work enforcing property crimes, recovering stolen property, and his professionalism on and off duty. He is known for his diligent work ethic and approachability.”

Staff Sergeant Debra Anderson (“Deb” as she is known by her colleagues) originally served as a military police officer with the Canadian Forces, then as a Waterloo University police officer. She later joined the Fergus Police Service, earning the rank of Sergeant. In 1999, Fergus Police amalgamated with the Ontario Provincial Police to become, the Wellington County OPP.

While with the Wellington OPP, Anderson was temporary Staff Sergeant Operations Manager affiliated with the newly amalgamated Grey Bruce OPP, where she worked diligently to amalgamate two detachments, She was then promoted to the rank of Staff Sergeant, then became Acting Inspector Detachment Commander with the Grey Bruce OPP.

Anderson was the pioneer of the Grey Bruce OPP’s new Mobile Crisis Response Team program in partnership with Grey Bruce Health Services, a program that brings mental health and addiction support to communities in both counties.

She is dedicated to all Grey Bruce, but she calls Grey Highlands her home with husband Curtis. The couple have an adult daughter, Olivia.

Said the Police Services Board in making this award, “Staff Sergeant Anderson serves the people of Grey Highlands with pride, professionalism and honour and leads the members of the Grey Bruce OPP with honesty integrity and courage. Deb is so very deserving of this recognition, although her humble nature would never disclose how dedicated and passionate, she is about the area, its residents and the members of the Grey Bruce OPP.”

Police Constable Craig O'Neill, the second award recipient, joined the Grey Bruce OPP in January 2022 and was posted to the Markdale Detachment. He chose Grey County as his first posting because he enjoys the area for its nature, sports and recreation.

PC O'Neill's work has contributed to a safer Grey Highlands. He takes a keen interest in property crimes and apprehending individuals linked to them. As a result of his deep knowledge of the community and intelligence gathering with community members, he located and arrested several wanted persons in the past year, and recently identified suspects involved in two separate crimes when other officers sent out requests for assistance. His efforts recently resulted in the recovery of a stolen vehicle and the arrest of a suspect. He also employed the consent of two community members to search their properties, which led to the recovery of stolen car parts, a snowmobile and other stolen articles. PC O'Neill continues to show high police visibility though his patrols and he often interacts with people in the criminal sub-culture to deliver the message that their unlawful activities will be addressed by police at every opportunity.

Said Grey Bruce OPP Operations Manager Debra Anderson about her fellow award recipient, “PC O'Neill carries himself with the utmost professionalism, respect and compassion while on and off duty. Although he is a new officer, his patience, approachability and uncanny ability to build relationships have quickly made him a recognized figure in the community. PC O'Neill's presence in the community while on and off duty embodies the essence of community policing. PC O'Neill makes the public feel like they can be part of the effort to combat crime and keep their own communities safe. PC O'Neill continually keeps Grey Highlands and surrounding communities safe and secure and surely deserves the recognition of being the Grey Highlands Officer of the Year.”

The two recipients each received a plaque attesting to their accomplishments. As well, their names will be added to the master plaque listing all previous award recipients, displayed at the Chatsworth detachment (the “head office” for the OPP in Grey and Bruce).

"The Officer of the Year awards have been presented to officers in Grey Highlands for the past 21 years," said Lynn Silverton, Police Board Chair and the original sponsor of the award program,

“As the wife of a retired police officer, I know that police have seldom been credited with the good work they do to protect us. This award helps remedy that ovesight, and it’s a signal to our officers that excellence and dedication will be recognized and rewarded.”

 

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