OTTAWA, April 9, 2002 -- Today, the RCMP presented the Honour Guard of the New York Police Department with a $136,000.00 Cdn cheque. The funds raised will assist the surviving families of New York police officers who lost their lives as a result of the terrorist attacks in the United States on September 11th, 2001.On September 17th, 2001 the RCMP's Divisional Staff Relations Representatives (DSRR), the RCMP's official labour relations program, created the RCMP-NYPD Disaster Relief Fund. The goal of the fund was to raise money to help the families of fallen comrades. Members and employees were encouraged to contribute until the middle of February.Not long after the establishment of the fund, two Constables from Burnaby, British Columbia, Cst. Lara Davidsen and Cst. Wendy Crowe, conceived the idea to sell commemorative baseball caps to help raise contributions for the fund. The caps feature the RCMP horse and rider, and the American and Canadian flags embroidered on the front. "In memory of NYC, Sept. 11, 2001" is embroidered on the back. More than 7,000 hats were sold across Canada and the US. Caps even found their way to Canadian and American troops serving in the Middle East.In New York, on behalf of Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli, Chief Superintendent Bernie Corrigan presented the funds raised from the sale of the caps and the moneys donated to the RCMP-NYPD Disaster Relief Fund to Chief Michael Scagnelli, President of the NYPD Honour Guard. "I am honoured to be presenting this contribution, both on behalf of Commissioner Zaccardelli and the more than 22,000 employees of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police," commented C/Supt. Corrigan. "I am very proud of the generosity and compassion of our employees. We hope this contribution will help the families of the New York police officers who lost their lives as a result of this tragedy," he added.-30-For further information:RCMP National Communication ServicesTel:(613) 993-2999 orFax: (613) 993-1095
