Strathcona County, Alta. - The Strathcona County Crime Watch Association (SCCWA) is celebrating 28 years this month. The SCCWA was first established back on Dec. 1, 1994, and since then has been serving as that extra set of eyes and ears for the Strathcona County RCMP.
The program was spearheaded back then by Mr. Crime Watch himself John Fuga and Cpl. Ben Wilkowski of the then Sherwood Park RCMP. When the program began Crime Watch, fan-outs were done by telephone with a system called Big Mouth. This used multiple phone lines and could often take hours to dial up the 1500 members at the time. The system was upgraded several years ago where all fan-outs are received immediately by all our members through an email system.
The Crime Watch Executive in cooperation with the local RCMP have delivered hundreds of presentations throughout the years to our community groups on a variety of topics including: Theft Prevention, Frauds and Scams, Firearms Legislation, and many more. SCCWA has always had a strong focus on working with our seniors and sharing the latest trends on scams and fraud prevention. Many citizens will remember John Fuga traveling the Province to deliver his Wise Owl lectures to 1000’s of seniors.
We often see on social media groups where people are concerned about crimes occurring and getting information. Currently the SCCWA has 445 Crime Watch Members and 107 Business Watch Members. The goal of both programs is to have as many citizens as possible aware of criminal or suspicious activity around us.
The more well informed our citizens are, the less likely criminal activity will occur and, if it does occur the more likely it will be solved. Simply put, Crime Watch is being more aware of your home and neighborhood and reporting any suspicious activities to police. This includes both rural and urban environments. The more people we have watching over our neighbors the safer our community will be.
There is no cost to join either Crime Watch or Business Watch. Interested people can find applications at the local RCMP Detachment or online at www.strathconacrimewatch.ca . All people must consent to a Criminal Records Check to be a part of SCCWA. You will now be able to receive instant updates on crimes occurring in our community and information on what to watch out for and prevention tips. There is no need for patrolling with SCCWA it is simply about receiving knowledge of crimes occurring and acting as an extra set of eyes and ears for the police and your neighbors!
SCCWA is looking for volunteers to sit on the executive as well. There are monthly meetings and some community events that SCCWA attends each year. If you have some free time to jump in and make a difference this is a great opportunity to get involved and network with our local police and association.
For more information please contact:
info@strathconacrimewatch.ca or check out our website at www.strathconacrimewatch.ca