Community Involvement & Recreation

Participating in the community outside your role as a police officer is an important part of your work/life balance. By bonding with teammates after hours and letting the public see your personal side, you help forge a positive image for the EPS. All while keeping fit and having fun!

Street Legal Team
Drag racing in Canada's urban centre streets is a serious problem and one that can claim innocent lives. The EPS is concerned about this growing trend in our community and has consequently formed the Street Legal Team. Using police race cars as an aid, team members develop relationships with the racing community.

The Street Legal Team is managed by the Blue Line Racing Association, which is a non-profit organization run by a volunteer group of EPS members and funded solely by community partners.

Cops for Cancer
In June 1994, Sgt. Gary Goulet of the EPS met Lyle Jorgenson, a five-year-old boy with cancer. Sgt. Goulet requested the meeting after learning that Lyle was being teased at school because of his hair loss from chemotherapy. The officer was moved by Lyle’s story and he wanted to help. That was the beginning of the Canadian Cancer Society’s Cops for Cancer campaign.

Since his head was already shaved, Sgt. Goulet gathered a group of EPS officers who were willing to shave their own heads and join Lyle at school to show kids that being bald was cool. His activities received plenty of media coverage, along with calls and letters from citizens touched by the officer's campaign.

One letter, however, moved Sgt. Goulet to do more. It came from a woman whose daughter had lost her hair during cancer treatment. She urged him to continue his campaign by challenging other police departments to get involved.

Sgt. Goulet contacted the Canadian Cancer Society and the head-shaving event caught on. Since that time, the campaign has grown to include a number of fundraising events including coin collections, golf tournaments, road races and head-shaving events. Police services across the country are now on-board in the fight against cancer.

Recreation and Sports
Members of the EPS have the opportunity to participate in a number of sports at many levels of competition. If you’re up for the challenge, there’s always a men’s, women’s or co-ed team needing an extra member. Teams include:

• hockey
• soccer
• softball
• football
• rowing
• badminton
• triathlon

There are also several drop-in classes offered for members at headquarters. Classes include martial arts, yoga and Pilates, to name a few. Every year, the EPS also enters a team into the Edmonton and Area Corporate Challenge.

Pipes and Drums
The Pipes and Drums of the EPS currently has 30 members made up of EPS, Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Canadian Armed Forces members. Only active and retired police officers are afforded the privilege to be a member of this band. The majority of members have learned their musical skills within the ranks of the EPS.

Blue Meadows
Members of the EPS enjoy access to a private campground within minutes of the city. It’s a great place to hold gatherings, family functions, or just get away from the city life for a weekend.

Hockey Teams
The EPS, in conjunction with the Edmonton Police Association, support a variety of hockey teams at all levels within the police service. The EPS Blues play in the Capital City Elite Men’s Hockey League. Many players from the league have played junior, minor pro, and even NHL. The Blues also take part in the Western Police Hockey Tournament on a yearly basis. The Faded Blues participate yearly in the Old Timers Challenge. So if you like to play hockey, there’s definitely a team for you at the EPS.

Soccer Teams
The EPS, in conjunction with the Edmonton Police Association, support a men’s team in both outdoor and indoor soccer. The team participates in the Edmonton District Soccer Association.

Triathlons
Ironcops for Cancer started in 1999 when a group of nine EPS members and one civilian teamed up to complete the Ironman Canada Triathlon (3.8 km swim, 180 km bike, 42.2 km run) to raise funds for the Canadian Cancer Society. Since then, the team has raced every second year, balancing out their commitment to the sport and community by volunteering at the race when not in a racing year. The team has grown to 125 members nationwide (both sworn police officers and civilians).

The team trains and fundraises throughout the year and is open to anyone committed to making a difference whether they have an interest in racing Ironman or not.