P.E.I. emergency responders pay tribute to Const. Heidi Stevenson

A small group of RCMP officers gathered at L Division headquarters in Charlottetown on Friday at 2 p.m., to take a moment of silence to honour the life and work of Const. Heidi Stevenson.

The 23-year RCMP veteran and mother of two was killed Sunday responding to the Nova Scotia gunman who killed 21 other people, a tragedy that began Saturday night and lasted late into Sunday morning.

Stevenson and the other victims were also remembered earlier in the day as emergency response vehicles paraded through P.E.I.'s cities.

"It was kind of unexpected what went on today," said Cpl. Scott Mintie with the RCMP East Prince detachment. 

"We knew that there were going to be some emergency services come by and do a drive-by parade for us, but we weren't really expecting to see the emergency services that came and people from the community as well.

"It kind of warms the heart to think that people took the time out of their day to respect us and to come out and show their respect in the best way that they could, given the COVID-19."

In both Charlottetown and Summerside, vehicles travelled through the cities before stopping at RCMP detachments in Stratford and East Prince respectively. 

Mintie said the pandemic makes grieving the loss of Stevenson very difficult, as they can't go through the process they normally would in the immediate aftermath, like having a regimental funeral.

"Everybody is kind of hurting over this. There's been a great loss in Nova Scotia and in the community," he said. 

"We've lost a member of our family."

Sgt. Jason Blacquiere with Summerside police said the parades are a way the first responder community in P.E.I. can show support for Stevenson, the RCMP and the communities affected by the tragedy.

"We all do the same job, we all face the same situations … so it's important that the other agencies know that they're being supported," he said.

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