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www.insideHALTON.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, June 13, 2012 · 12 Former Oakville officers recall the good times Continued from page 1 in the past, the last one in 2003, Cormier said many felt this was the best, due to its casual and fun nature. "This wasn't a suit-and-tie, sitdown dinner. This was sit around and have great discussions about the past, present and, hopefully, the future," said Cormier, who joined the Oakville Police Department in 1969. "There was a lot more opportunity to talk to each other and socialize than there had been in the past. I think that was the key to it being the most successful one. Time marches on and there is nothing more important than reunions and reacquainting yourself with people from the past." Numerous subjects were discussed including the difference between policing now and back in the 1960s and 1970s. Some pointed to the computer revolutionizing both policing and crime as a significant change, while others pointed to the police services' growing diversity and increase in officer accountability. "The accountability level is much, much higher than it was back then," said Ted Waller, who joined the Oakville Police Department in 1963. "If we stepped out of line, we had to answer to our superiors back then. Now, if you step out of line, you answer to your superiors, the political wing up and then the provincial wing of investigating what they call police misconduct." Algar said that because Oakville was so much smaller in the 1960s and 1970s, policing was more straightforward. "When you were in Oakville, you knew everyone in Oakville. You knew the guys who were doing the crimes," he said. "That's changed considerably. Crime is more transient now." Waller said there was no shortage of amusing stories told and retold during the reunion. One of his stories dates back to when Waller was new on the job and was asked to keep an eye out for a stolen Volkswagen. Waller ended up locating and pulling over the Volkswagen while driving in the area of Upper Middle (which Waller said was just a dirt road back then) and Trafalgar roads. "He (the driver) gave me one of the best stories I've ever heard as to how "When you were in Oakville, you knew everyone in Oakville. You knew the guys who were doing the crimes." Ean Algar, Former Halton Regional Police Chief and Town of Oakville Police Department officer he came into possession of that car from a friend of his at the Royal Oak Hotel," said Waller. "He said, `Take me back to the Royal Oak Hotel. I'm going to get this guy, whose name is Gord, and he'll verify he gave me that car. I didn't know it was stolen.' I take this big fellow back to the hotel. He starts asking around about this Gord guy, can't find him. To make a long story short, I released him. The story sounded good to me." The following day, Waller was called before a pair of detectives who said they had been trying for years to catch this man behind the wheel of a stolen vehicle. "We had a good chuckle on that," said Waller. "I, of course, felt about a foot high and apologized. I think they did eventually go out and arrest him." Algar told a story in which he and other officers responded to a break-in at a car dealership garage. The would-be thieves were still present when police arrived and started to run away, but not before Algar recognized one of them and called out the man's name. "As he's running out the back door, he's yelling at the top of his lungs, `It's not me Mr. Algar. It's not me'," said the former chief with a laugh. While not all the stories from those days are humourous, Algar said the funny ones were the ones those at the reunion liked to remember and discuss the most. Certain cases, like the intense investigation into the Perdue High School arson were also discussed. Cormier said he remembered the amount of digging and detective work officers did to solve that case. While the reunion was well attended, Cormier said there were a few notable absences, particularly former Oakville Police Chief Fred Oliver who died in 2011. To help remember Oliver and other highlights of the Oakville Police Department-era, each attendant was given a DVD containing a 50-page virtual book filled with photos and stories submitted by former Oakville Police Department members and assembled by the event organizers. With the reunion now over, many are talking about another. "Every year there are fewer of them, which makes it more important to get together more frequently," said Cormier.