Chatham-Kent police is celebrating its 25th anniversary and its retirees.
They hosted a public open house and retiree dinner on Friday to commemorate the anniversary.
A variety of police equipment was on display at the Chatham Armoury.
Deputy Police Chief Kirk Earley told CK News Today the service thought it would be a good opportunity to show the public some of the crucial equipment needed to keep the community safe.
"It's tools that we have to have to ensure public safety. We hope we don't have to use them, but at least our members and our community know that we have them to keep them safe if needed. And let's just hope we don't have to," said Early.
Earley said officers sign up to serve because they are selfless and put the community first, but reminds the community that they are still human beings with feelings and emotions.
"I think the most important thing is to remember that we're people too and we want to make sure that we humanize the badge. My name is Kirk first, I'm a human being first and I'm a police officer second. We have the emotions like anybody else, but we are the community and the community is us. So, we're all in this together," he said.
Deputy Chief Earley said policing is a difficult job, but it's still extremely rewarding.
Police services across Kent County and the city of Chatham amalgamated in 1998 to form the Chatham-Kent Police Service, which now employs over 225 employees.
