In a fitting tribute to his memory, Constable Ireneusz
“Eric” Czapnik’s hat lay on top of his casket. It was a true testament to the
career he loved, one he had selected at a time when most are considering
retirement.
Called a hero by his stepson Luckasz Galaska, Czapnik was
the oldest recruit in the history of the Ottawa
police force, donning the uniform in 2007 at the age of 48.
Ottawa
police Chief Vern White told the story of how Czapnik had joined the force,
following in his father’s footsteps.
“When many officers are nearing the sunset of their careers,
the sun was rising on his,” White said. “When he was hired the recruiting
officer simply said, ‘I have never seen anyone who wanted something so bad.’”
Despite his being new to the force, the Czapnik service was
attended by more than 8,000 people at Lansdowne, with many more braving the
January weather to sit outside and watch the procession arrive from Carleton University.
Bank Street was a sea of blue on Jan. 5 as police officers
paraded towards the Civic Centre to remember their fallen comrade.
“I stand before you today so extremely proud and so very
humbled, heartbroken and amazed at the sheer magnitude of outpouring my family
has received from the entire world,” Galaska said.
Denyse Baizana was a volunteer at the Ottawa Hospital Rehabilitation
Centre where another Ottawa
hero, Const. Robin Easey attended after being shot in the 1984 Bayshore
shooting. She waited outside to see the service because she felt the community
had something to give back to Czapnik.
“Police officers are out there everyday risking their lives
to keep us safe,” she said. “I think it is very important to show them that
they have our support.”
A woman, who wished to be identified only as Jennifer due to
the fact that her husband does undercover work for the Ottawa police, said times like these can
drive home the danger her husband faces everyday.
“You can’t think about it too much or you would go out of
your mind,” she said. “But it was important for me and my husband to be here to
support the (Czapnik) family.”
Officers came out in the thousands because their membership
in the force is akin to being in a family, said one member of the Toronto police force,
Andrew Ecklund.
“Absolutely we are a family,” Ecklund said. “It’s a tragic
loss.”
Ecklund said he knows his own family worried about the work
he did while he was still on the street.
“In this case it really brings home the danger that we
face,” he said. “He was just sitting in his car writing notes. So you never
know what can happen.”
Retired Ottawa Deputy Chief and Nepean resident Larry Hill said that each
time a comrade falls, it makes him remember the ones before.
“I have been to funerals of officers in Montreal and Cobourg,” he said. “Each one is
awful. But this one, for an officer to be murdered is so much harder. I know
every officer here is thinking about what they would have done.”
College Coun. Rick Chiarelli said that the brutal attack of
an officer had turned into an attack on the whole community.
“It’s very important that we come out and show the support
for the family at this time,” he said. “Const. Czapnik’s death reminds us how
lucky we are to have these brave men and women looking out for us.”
Czapnik graduated from the Ontario
Police College
at the top of his class and was hired by the Ottawa police shortly after.
At his unit, Czapnik went by the nickname Pickles for his
love of a good pickle and the occasional vodka on the side.
“When he was addressed by an NCO as ‘Eric’ he would say in
his thick Polish accent, ‘You can call me Pickles sir,’” Const. Troy Froats, a
platoon member and friend of Czapnik’s said. “His pride in his career and in
his family and the life they had built together was obvious.”
White, who was so choked up at times that he was reduced to
whispers, pledged the support of the police family to the one that Czapnik had
left behind.
“One senseless act took away a son, husband and father from
his family,” he said. “There is a blanket of emotion that covers us as we
grieve.”
Czapnik was stabbed outside the Civic Hospital’s emergency
room doors on Dec. 29 while making notes on an unrelated case.
Nearby paramedics restrained the suspect and tried to save
Czapnik, but were unable to.
His accused killer, 43-year-old Kevin Gregson, is a
suspended member of the RCMP.
Czapnik is the first Ottawa
police officer to be killed on the job since 1983.
“Words can’t replace a husband, a son, or a father,” Ontario
Premier Dalton McGuinty said. “But we mourn with you (the family). And we will
remember him every time we think about an officer racing to the scene or in a
simple act of kindness. He will not be forgotten.”
jennifer.mcintosh@nepeanthisweek.com