'Here to help': The Watch celebrating 5 years of patrolling Lethbridge streets
Volunteers with ‘The Watch’ program in Lethbridge have been patrolling the city centre rain or shine for five years.
“I feel amazing about our program and what we have done in the five years,” said Tashiah Robbins, who has been with The Watch since it started on May 1, 2019.
What began as a three-year Lethbridge Police Service (LPS) pilot project to enhance community safety during the opioid crisis has grown to become a full-time unit within LPS.
“Knowing that we work for the police department was a huge barrier when we first started,” said Shane Kisinger, manager of The Watch.
“So, it took a lot for (volunteers) to build a rapport with the at-risk population and get to know them, but I think what that means to them is that they know we are on the street 12 hours a day, every single day except for holidays, and we are safe, consistent and professional.”
The Watch has had 100 volunteers and 33 team leads serving a total of 18,666 hours since 2019.
“We had a little of growing pains near the beginning, but where we are now, the unhoused population love to talk to us, they know that we are here to help them,” Robbins said.
Since launching, The Watch has dealt with 31,990 calls with police, EMS or wellness checks.
They’ve completed 1,235 safe walks, transported 2,001 individuals and provided Narcan to 199 overdose calls.
“We’ve had some high numbers,” Kisinger explained. “If you look at 2022, that was really busy year for us as well. It seems this year is slowing down compared to years in the past so hopefully we're not as busy because being busy means there's social problems are the streets.”
While the majority of The Watch is comprised of volunteers, there are a handful of full-time paid staff members.
Kenlin Dijkstra has been a team lead with The Watch since October. He, like many who volunteer, is hoping to pursue a career in the policing industry.
“It's not an easy thing to ask someone to come and serve their community and then also not get paid for it,” Dijkstra said.
“So, it's just amazing the work and effort they put into it and you definitely see a difference that they make.”
With May 1 marking five years in service, Kisinger applauds the work done by LPS and the volunteers, but also gives credit to the community they serve.
“How we've been able to be successful for the last five years is definitely, half of it, is how the at-risk population treat us and they treat us quite well,” he added.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Serial sexual offender linked to unsolved 1970s homicides of four Calgary girls, women
An investigation into unsolved historical homicides from the 1970s has linked the deaths of two girls and two young women in and around Calgary to a now-deceased serial offender.
Woman with liver failure rejected for a transplant after medical review highlights alcohol use
For nearly three months, Amanda Huska has been in an Ontario hospital, part of it on life support, because of severe liver failure. Her history of alcohol use is getting in the way of her only potential treatment: a liver transplant.
A look back on Alberta's record-breaking wildfire season: Preparing for potential challenges in 2024
By the end of the 2023 wildfire season in Alberta, 1,088 wildfires had burned more than 2.2 million hectares of land, and this year, the wildfire season is already in full swing.
Craig Berube named as next head coach of Toronto Maple Leafs
Craig Berube is the next head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Video appears to show Sean 'Diddy' Combs beating singer Cassie in hotel hallway in 2016
Security video aired by CNN appears to show Sean 'Diddy' Combs physically assaulting singer Cassie in a Los Angeles hotel hallway in 2016.
B.C. man 'attacked suddenly' by adult grizzly near Alberta border: RCMP
A B.C. man is recovering from multiple injuries after he was "attacked suddenly" by an adult grizzly bear near Elkford Thursday afternoon.
Australia's richest woman seeks removal of her portrait from exhibition
Art is subjective. And while many artists long to share their work with the world, there's no guarantee that the audience will understand it, or even like it.
Anglers reel in 3.5-metre-long tiger shark off coast of Florida: 'She found my bait'
A group of fishers said it took roughly 20 minutes to reel in this 3.5-metre-long tiger shark off the coast of Florida.
Scottie Scheffler isn't the first pro golfer to be arrested during a tournament
Scottie Scheffler's arrest hours before his second-round tee time at the PGA Championship in Louisville, Kentucky, will go down as one of the most shocking in professional golf history. It certainly wasn't the first, though.