By Sharan Sandhu
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| Bernie Karcher |
He moves
quickly — so fast that people have come to think of him as a blur: the vague
outline of a loose black jacket, accented by a splash of small hair showing few
grey streaks. His jacket is draped loosely across his shoulder as if he’s
daring the world to grab hold and try to slow him down.
This was Bernie
Karcher.
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| ….Bernie on the right |
Bernie had the ability to make people crave to do volunteer work with
him. The enthusiasm and support he gave to every volunteer made them find the
work fun. As President of Mill Woods Community Patrol Bernie communicated with
all volunteers and treated them
with respect, and encouraged them when needed. Bernie tried to get the best out
of his team of volunteers by being understanding them and inspiring them.
He made you feel as if you were involved in a very important enterprise,
where discipline was the priority and things are going well. He was a great
volunteer leader. If you ever patrolled with him, you saw some of the finest
traits of him, like his observations, his enthusiasm, his confidence and his witty
comments. Bernie Karcher was quick
but not hasty, committed but not
rigid, analytical but did not
over-analyze and he was thoughtful,
but is not obsessive. The people who knew him from many years say that he could
smell the problems in the community when he was patrolling, and that was the
reason that he spent good time attending courts.
Among all
the action, Bernie sat with his Blackberry/laptop or iPad with his small glasses
sitting on his nose and then went about his work. He updated the volunteer status, looked at new
volunteer applications, studied newly introduced laws and legislations to be
introduced and so much more. He
could easily multi-task. But the amazing thing is that Bernie occasionally threw
comments into all the conversations that are happening around him. It always
amazed me that he could concentrate intently on his volunteer work,
professional work and still know what was going on with his family.
Bernie was
very well aware of his professional, personal and volunteer responsibilities
and amazingly he keep a perfect balance. He was available wherever he was
required, and he showed up for everything because he just wanted to be there to
show that it mattered. That’s why he was a terrific human being: he understood
the importance of being there, of being having a presence, and of showing up.
The best thing about Bernie Karcher was that being the head of Mill
Woods Community Patrol, he did not command excellence; he built excellence. In
his words, excellence is “being all you can be” within the bounds of doing what
is right for the organization.
Bernie was a recipient of many
awards, including the 2009 Harry Hole Community Policing and the Good
Neighbours Award. On May 10, 2013, another feather was attached to his cap —
the 22nd Annual Crime Prevention Award for 2013 for Mill Woods
Community Patrol in the category of Police-Community Collaboration.
In my opinion Bernie was a true role model for every volunteer to make Alberta an
exemplary place to live in.
This is the person that was: the
person who died on March 27th.
He touched many people through his
volunteer efforts with MWCP, Operation Red Nose, the Edmonton Indy, the MS Bike
Tour, Santas Anonymous, the Progress Club, World Triathalon, the Mill Woods
Presidents’ Council, Mill Woods Canada Day celebrations. Bernie constantly made
the extra effort to reach out and make a difference in somebody’s life. His
cool-headed and positive approach to every situation struck a chord with
thousands of people he interacted with, along with me. His irreverent sense of
humor and love for helping people of any background will ensure that he will
never be forgotten.
Rest in Peace, Bernie Karcher.
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| …Bernie in the blue shirt Click here to send an email l |
