Bashaw RCMP recently devised a way to not only recognize citizens for their support of the RCMP and members of the detachment for their exemplary services, but honour the rich history that surrounds Bashaw.

RCMP Sergeant Trent Cleveland, along with Public Service employee Krista Dubitz, spawned the idea of designing and creating a Challenge Coin that would encompass the history of the Bashaw jurisdiction.

Challenge Coins date back as early as the Roman Empire where the coins were originally used to prove one’s loyalty to the emperor. The coins served to remind those possessing them of their allegiance to the emperor and as a record of their accomplishments.

As history progressed, challenge coins became a popular way for military units to promote esprit de corps (pride and loyalty to a group) given as gifts to military commanders and other high-ranking officials. The coins would be distributed throughout the members of the unit, who would keep the coins with them at all times and, in the event of capture, would present the coin as proof of their identity and allegiance.

Today, challenge coins have become a popular initiative for law enforcement organizations, often traded or gifted to members of other law enforcement agencies or members of the public befitting a supportive and collaborative relationship with the agency.

“I did this same initiative when I was in Killam, and it was a huge success with recognizing members and citizens,” said Cleveland. “It allowed the detachment to have its own identity when sharing Challenge Coins. We even had them auctioned off at not-for-profit events to help generate revenue for the non-profit organizations.”

The Bashaw Challenge Coin was specifically designed to honour the history of the area it represents.

The seven feathers represent the story of the seven Indigenous hunters at Haunting Lake, along with Treaty 6 and Treaty 7.

“We had six feathers coloured white to show Treaty 6 and the total 7 feathers for Treaty 7 and the 7 Hunters,” explained Cleveland, sharing the story on which the Seven Feathers was based.

“One winter, seven Indigenous hunters camped there for the night. In the morning, they looked out across the lake and spied the magnificent head and antlers of a deer caught in the ice. The seven hunters headed off and upon reaching the creature, they started to chip away at the ice. The mighty animal, which was very much alive, gave a great heave and smashed through the ice. It swam for shore, breaking a path before it. The deer made it to shore and the safety of the woods, but the men were not so lucky. They plunged through the ice and all seven drowned. It is said the seven hunters have haunted the lake ever since, giving the spot its name. Locals also claim that every winter a mysterious phenomenon can be observed when a huge fissure appears in the ice along the path the deer traveled to the shore.”

The hills that the feathers stand upon represent the area around Bashaw all the way to Stettler. “This area has a lot of hills which are from the glacier movement thousands/millions of years ago, which caused the beautiful landscape.”

The train/railroad has origins in Mirror, which was known as the railway town, employing a large number of railway employees.

“The Grand Trunk Pacific Railway became a part of the Canadian National Railway in 1920. Since then the line running through Mirror has been operated by CN,” explained Cleveland.

The grain elevators represent the large farming community surrounding Bashaw that utilize the railway for grain transportation.

“The Land Title (hearts, spades, diamonds and clubs) is a well known story in Bashaw,” noted Cleveland who went on to describe the story.

“According to the history book, Joe Louis, Frank Allan, Alec Salmon and Art Robinson were involved in a serious poker game. Joe Louis ran out of money and put the title to his land in as security for the pot. On the turn of a card, Joe Louis lost his land. Andy Allan, the winner of the game, later sold the quarter section to Mr. Bashaw for five hundred dollars.”

Accordingly, this is how the community came to be known as Bashaw. They even have a statue out front of the community centre of  the two playing cards.

In speaking of the important role, initiatives such as the Challenge Coin play in maintaining positive partnerships, Cleveland said, “It is a great way to recognize our dedicated members that work in our detachment and a way to recognize external RCMP members, units and external partners that have assisted the detachment. We have even handed the Challenge Coin out to citizens who have assisted the detachment, such as when a citizen helped locate a property crime offender allowing the RCMP to utilize a snowmobile to track the offender and arrest.”

The Bashaw Challenge Coin will serve as a tangible symbol of the connectivity members of the Bashaw RCMP detachment have with members of the community they serve.