Elevations and Appointments to the Order of Merit

Monday, September 8, 2014

Tomorrow, His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada will announce that Chief Bradley S. Duncan has been elevated in the Order of Merit of the Police Forces, from Member of the Order of Merit (M.O.M) to Officer of the Order of Merit (O.O.M).

His Excellency will also announce Deputy Chief Brent Shea’s and Superintendent Ken Heslop’s appointments to the Order of Merit of the Police Forces (M.O.M).

The Order of Merit of the Police Forces honours a career of exceptional service or distinctive merit displayed by the men and women of the Canadian Police Services, and recognizes their commitment to this country. The primary focus is on exceptional merit, contributions to policing and community development.

Chief Duncan will be elevated in the Order of Merit in his 35th year of service with the London Police Service for his commitment to strengthening community relationships and partnerships, including ongoing involvement and advocacy for diverse communities, as well as the vulnerable and marginalized in our community. Chief Duncan’s initiatives in this area include: the London Police Service Multi-Faith Chaplaincy Program, instituting the cadet recruit mentoring program for diverse candidates and his pioneering work and advocacy in the area of response to persons with mental health issues (the Mobile Response Team initiative).

Appointed to the Order of Merit is Deputy Chief Brent Shea in his 35th year of service with the London Police Service, for his leadership and expert contributions in Forensics and police human resources, as well as his ongoing commitment to community service over many years, participating in programs and events for the betterment of our community. Following the events of September 11, 2001, Deputy Chief Shea was identified for his expertise in Explosive Disposal (EDU) and Chemical, Biological, Radioactive and Nuclear (CBRN) incidents and was selected to inform many provincial and national conferences and training sessions related to these topics. Deputy Chief Shea has held and continues to hold several positions on the Board of Directors of various organizations, both professionally and personally.

Also appointed to the Order of Merit is Superintendent Ken Heslop for his outstanding public service and significant contributions to policing, community involvement, volunteerism and leadership throughout his 38 year policing career. Highlights of Superintendent Heslop’s career include: being awarded the Johnson-Reitz Police Service Award for the development of the Children’s Aid Society child abuse protocol and joint investigative response for the London Region, being a major contributor to the Family Court Clinic’s research initiative “Project Guardian: The Sexual Exploitation of Male Youth in London, Ontario”, as well as being awarded three Chief’s Citations for his leadership roles in projects involving child exploitation, police-community relations and for outstanding service in 1997, 2005 and 2010 respectively.

His Excellency, The Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada will bestow these honours Tuesday, September 9th, 2014 at Rideau Hall, Ottawa.

Over 150,000 Monthly Readers! 1 Million+ Across the entire FreePress Network.