As he looked at the mourners, he thought about how easy it could be his family sitting there in tears.
“It’s a stark reality of the dangers we face every day,” the Pictou County RCMP officer said Wednesday after returing from the service honouring the three Codiac RCMP officers who were killed last week.
Local police including 18 Pictou County RCMP officers, 10 New Glasgow officers and others from Stellarton and Westville travelled to take part in the service.
“It was a bit surreal,” Dunlevy said. “One never wants to be in a situation like that. Then again, an officer feels a sense of comfort when they’re surrounded by 6,000 of their brother and sisters.”
He listened to the words of the Prime Minister and others who spoke of the sacrifice of the three men and the lives they lived.
“They weren’t just words,” Dunlevy said. “They hit home.”
The eulogies were particularly moving.
“At the end of the day, I think we can all strive to have some of the qualities they possessed,” he said. “These were top-notch guys.”
Const. Ken MacDonald of the New Glasgow Regional Police Service also attended.
“Our main reason why we go up there is to show support for the RCMP and the Codiac detachment but also we go out of respect for the RCMP here and to show our support at that time of sorrow,” he said.
He said it was very emotional to be part of it.
“At the end of the day we are brothers and sisters at arms in the law enforcement community,” MacDonald said. “That is one of the largest funeral services I’ve seen. It just shows that in a time of need everyone will come together and show that support.”
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