On Thursday, May 26, 2011, at 11:00 a.m., Retired Chief Derek McElveny passed the ceremonial sword over to Chief Jeff Kellner at our Change of Command Ceremony, which took place at the Brantford campus of Mohawk College. This Change of Command was a double ceremony when Geoff Nelson was sworn in as Deputy Chief of Police.
The Honourable Mr. Justice James Kent administered the Oaths to Chief Kellner and Deputy Chief Nelson.
Chief Kellner, originally from Simcoe, is a 31-year veteran of the Service. He is our City's 12th Chief of Police. On hand for this auspicious occasion were Retired Chiefs Al Barber, Bob Peeling, Ray Fitzpatrick and Derek McElveny. We were also honoured that Mrs. Bev Weir, widow of Chief John Weir, was in attendance.
Our members had a significant role in the success of the ceremony. Platform guests were piped in by Sergeant Mike Reid, a member of "D" Platoon. The invocation and benediction were given by Mrs. Gloria Figueira, a previously ordained minister, who is a member of our Communications Team. The master of ceremonies was Inspector Scott Easto and Ms. Careyanne Andrews, a talented local soloist, sang our national anthem.
A good cross-section of our sworn complement and an auxiliary member served on the Honour Guard, under the command of Sergeant Chuck Wheeler. Staff Sergeant Cheney Venn, Sergeant Brad Cotton, Acting Sergeant Gary Thompson, Constables Ben Alexander, Mark Baxter, Ed Bragg, Chris Coombe, Andrea Cooper, Jason Davis, Brent Gage, Darryl Graham, Jonathan Hall, Rob Hall, Sang Bong Lee, David Parker, Grant Pitts, Steven Shefar, Dana Sims, Mark Whitworth and Auxiliary Officer Gerik Skoretz represented our Service well.
The Honour Guard was inspected by Mayor Chris Friel, Chair of the Brantford Police Services Board, Chief Kellner and Retired Chief Derek McElveny. After the ceremony, guests returned to our Community Room for a reception.
Chief Kellner and Deputy Chief Nelson extend their appreciation to all members (current and retired), past and present members of the Brantford Police Services Board, family and friends, representatives from the court community, officers from police agencies across Ontario, and platform guests for making this a special occasion. Chief Kellner and Deputy Chief Nelson also thank staff at Mohawk College for making their facility available.
Chief Kellner and Deputy Chief Nelson are honoured to serve the citizens of Brantford.
