Behind the Badge Series - Cpl. Susan Richter

There are few images more iconically Canadian than a Mountie in Red Serge, recognized not only across our country but internationally. Corporal Susan Richter has had what she describes as the privilege and opportunity to travel across Canada and internationally, attending various events and meeting people from around the world while wearing her Red Serge. She shared some of her photos with us, and also talks about visiting schools and chatting with students as part of a D.A.R.E. team (Drug Abuse Resistance Program); and the Cochrane, Alberta community's warm and generous response to COVID-19 siren parades. Thank you, Cpl. Richter, for all you do to fly the flag and keep our communities safe and healthy.
Transcript of video:
Susan Richter
RCMP Officer, Cochrane, A.B. and NPF Member
What does your job mean to you?
I have always wanted to be a police officer for as long as I can remember. For me, I feel it's my calling and it has truly been a career nowhere near ordinary, as our expression is. I've had so many phenomenal experiences that I never imagined possible. Many of those were interacting with the public and getting to live and work in a whole bunch of different communities and meeting a lot of different people.
You’ve been an ambassador for the RCMP. What was that like?
I've had a lot of moments in my career where I find myself thinking “I can't believe I get to do this.” In 2005, the Queen came to Canada, and in Alberta, we created a ceremonial troupe which involved a lot of members who wanted to volunteer to be involved in various Red Serge duties throughout the province. I did an event at the legislature where myself and another member stood outside of the legislature and saluted as she went in, which is a really neat experience. And then I've done events all over the province. I really like doing parades. I've done the Capital Ex parade in Edmonton several times. And the Calgary Stampede parade is one of my favourites as well. In 2007, I had the opportunity to go to Japan to do Red Serge duty there. It was a really neat experience
How did you get involved with Drug Abuse Resistance Education?
When I first started in Thorsby, I started working with youth and doing school tours and just talking to different youth groups, and then I got involved as being a D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) instructor. That was a really fun experience. I really like going into the school and spending time with the kids, and in the second or third year, I was teaching D.A.R.E. I had the opportunity to bring it to the Hutterite community north of Thorsby. And that was the first time that had ever been done.
How did COVID-19 impact you as an RCMP officer?
When COVID and the lockdown first started, I was contacted at Cochrane detachment by this lady who is a member of a residential community for her neighbourhood. And she asked if we could just drive by and hit our lights and sirens, and people would cheer and bang pots of pans, and just something to uplift their spirits. We ended up calling them “Sirens Parades.” They started to become very popular, and they quickly evolved into being a charitable event as well. So the residents would donate items for the local food bank, and they ended up becoming so popular that we had to start taking three police trucks in order to be able to carry all of the donations that we were getting for the food bank. For me, it's times like that where we're going through our hardest times…but we also see the best in people.
The views expressed in this video are of the National Police Federation and not the Royal Canadian Mounted Police