A long-time volunteer at the Richmond RCMP is being remembered for his dedication to his work.
Walter Tyrrell, a retired RCMP Staff Sergeant, passed away peacefully in his care home facility at the age of 96, according to the Richmond RCMP.
Tyrrell was known for always volunteering his time at the Richmond RCMP detachment in 2001 and continued until 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic put a halt to all volunteering activities.
Throughout his years, he also volunteered with the City of Richmond and other organizations, which earned him many accolades including being named a "Paul Harris Fellow" for his contribution to Rotary International and receiving a Sovereign's Medal for Volunteers by the Lieutenant Governor of B.C. in 2019.
"Walter Tyrell’s contributions to Richmond RCMP and the City of Richmond were second to none," said Chief Supt. Dave Chauhan, at the Richmond RCMP.
"Since 2001, Walter logged more than 20,000 volunteer hours with Richmond RCMP. That equates to more than nine years of full-time employment promoting public safety in our community."
"If you paid a visit to either the Richmond RCMP’s Vancouver International Airport sub-office or the South Arm community policing office during the past two decades, chances are you met Walter," said Chauhan.
"He truly was a fixture here, and we shall miss him dearly."
Tyrrell was born on Aug. 5, 1926, in Blackfalds, Alberta and eventually moved to Australia and joined the 53rd Radar group in the Royal Australian Air Force in 1944.
After the Second World War, Tyrrell returned to Canada and joined the RCMP in 1951. He was then promoted to Staff Sgt. of a specialized section in Vancouver.
Tyrell retired from the RCMP force in 1976, but continued to work in the insurance fraud unit at ICBC until he retired from there in 1985.
Between 1981 and 1991, Tyrrell was involved with the Royal Canadian Air Cadets and became the commander of 692 and 655 Air Cadet Squadrons in Richmond.
He left the Air Cadet League of Canada in 2011 as a Provincial Secretary.
