After 25 years, Julie Skippon, the president and face of the B.C. Schizo-phrenia Society's Sunshine Coast Branch, is retiring. She, along with Const. Ashley Taylor, were honoured at the annual general meeting of the society on June 1.
Skippon has two sons with mental illness. She has worked tirelessly on the Coast to bring awareness and help to those dealing with schizophrenia.
One of the personal highlights of the past year for Skippon was her recognition as Gibsons' Golden Girl. The award, bestowed annually on a senior woman in the community who has done much to improve the lives of folks at the south end of the Coast, was a surprise to Skippon. Modest to the core, she was amazed to be given the title.
Another high point of the year was a successful one-day conference held last September. The event, conceived and co-ordinated by branch member Rita Petrescu, was titled "Living with mental illness: a community approach."
Skippon will stay involved with the society, but is happy to turn over the reins of the organization to new president, Art Jones.
Taylor was recognized with a plaque on Friday evening that read, "In appreciation for compassion and skill in dealing with a person with mental illness."
The award came about after the RCMP officer spent several hours with a mother and her schizophrenic adult child at both the family home and hospital. In a heart-wrenching presentation, the mother said Taylor's kindness turned a horrible ordeal into something bearable.
Taylor wasn't aware the presentation was taking place when she and her boss, Staff Sgt. Herb Berdahl accepted the invitation to attend the meeting and subsequent dinner and social time. She was touched to be honoured for something she thought any caring human being would do.
Taylor, a five-year member of the local detachment, is not a stranger to mental health issues. Two members of her family suffered from mental illness, and this had a profound effect on the young woman.
"It's disappointing that more isn't done in our society for people with mental illness. If someone has cancer, it's a socially acceptable disease. People are empathetic. Mental illness can go untreated because of our society's attitude. That's one of the reasons it's so difficult to deal with. It can take longer to diagnose, people are in denial of it," she said.
She also realizes how difficult it is for families to have to call the police when they aren't able to reason with their sick child or sibling.
"The worst thing [parents] think they could do is call the cops on their kid," Taylor said.
It makes her sad that recent stories in the media can reinforce that opinion. It also strengthens her choice of career. Taylor, who didn't start out to make community policing her life calling, has come to realize over the past few years that this is where her passion lies.
She was recruited at the University of Victoria in her third year of a science degree. Taylor had originally planned to be a doctor when she heard a recruiter lecture on policing. She thought she would have at least a year to complete her studies before the call would come, but within four months she was in Regina "freezing my little butt off."
Taylor laughed at her initial naiveness.
"I thought everything sounded so exciting. Once I found out parade was an inspection, I wasn't so impressed," she rued.
At one point she also thought teaching might be on the horizon.
"I like being around young people, so I went into coaching to do that," she explained.
Since being on the Coast, she's coached basketball and soccer in addition to playing soccer on the Blazers team.
Although it looks as though Taylor will be moving on from the Coast (often officers relocate after five years at a posting), she definitely plans to stay the course in community policing. And because so much of policing now involves dealing with mental illness, she doesn't see any changes in that regard either. An upbeat, positive person, she said the recognition she received last week could have gone to any of the members of the Sunshine Coast force.
"This is an excellent detachment. Most of the public doesn't know just how great these young officers are. Most of them, like me, got into the job just because they want to help people. We are lucky," she said - a sentiment the members of the schizophrenia society echoed when they honoured the women on Friday.
