Corporal Shannon  Haubrick-Letendre accepts burger from Pastor Paul Berteig –photo 250News

Prince George, B.C. Hundreds of people gathered on 5th Avenue between Victoria and Vancouver streets in Prince George today to  say  thank you to the RCMP.

The block part bar-b-q, which  featured free food,  and music,  was initially  planned as a “welcome to the neighbourhood” by   Timbers Community Church  Pastor Paul Berteig as the  Prince George  RCMP moved into its new detachment.

What  started  as a welcome to the neighbourhood  event,  changed  following the  events in Moncton when three RCMP  officers were killed in the line of duty. 

Pastor Berteig  fought back tears  as he  talked about   how the event  took on new meaning  following that tragedy “In the wake of the events of last week, this event is so much more meaningful.  We’re just really grateful,  these guys have such a hard  job.  I can’t imagine what it would be like to go to someone’s house in the middle of the night and say that their loved one had been killed, and then have to go home and go to bed at night.”

At right,  a simple message  spelled out in chalk on 5th Avenue

The event is important to the RCMP members.  Corporal Craig Douglass  says the  event  has been sponsored by  nearly every  church in the  city,  and businesses stepped forward to  donate  food and cash to make the event a success  “It’s just amazing to see that kind of response,  it makes us a little emotional to see  how much involvement there is.”

Pastor Berteig says  the message is simple, “We just want to say we love them, we appreciate  them and we are so  thankful they work so hard and sacrifice so much to keep us safe.”