Annual Moncton run for 3 fallen RCMP officers comes to an end
The event began in 2014, following the deaths of three Codiac RCMP constables in the line of duty
After a decade of bringing the community together to honour the lives of the three RCMP officers who died in a tragic shooting, the Three Fathers Memorial Run in Moncton has ended.
The race was held every Father's Day along Moncton's waterfront, following the deaths of constables Doug Larche, Dave Ross and Fabrice Gevaudan, who were killed in the line of duty on June 4, 2014.
Nadine Larche, widow of Doug Larche spokesperson for the board of directors of the Three Fathers Memorial Run, said simply "it was time."
"It wasn't a decision that was taken lightly," Larche told Information Morning Moncton.
More than 7,000 people were in attendance for the event's first year, Larche said, "an incredible show of support from the community."
"We were deep in our grief journey then and seeing the community coming together to rally behind us, to support us, to walk with us, run with us figuratively and literally was touching."
She said attendance at the 2024 run was about 500, which she considered 'still very good,' and said the lower attendance didn't have anything to do with the event coming to an end.
Larche said the board "just felt it was the right time to end and move forward."
She said the event helped her and her three daughters through the grieving process and allowed them to start to heal.
"It was just a place to go to remember their Dad, to honour their Dad, to be together as a family, to do something that he loved," she said.
Larche said the scholarship associated with the annual run will continue.
It generated enough donations over the years to award 162 young people with a combined $150,000 for post-secondary education.
"We give these scholarships to students who show resilience, who are involved in the community through volunteerism," said Larche.
The board of directors will continue to award scholarships to graduating students with the funds that remain.
"The letters that come through those scholarship applications just show how amazing the kids are in our area," she said.
Larche believes that the spirit of the run will remain alive, even as the event itself comes to an end.
With files from Information Morning Moncton
