“Don’t give up!”

Aidan Kokotilo-Moen is motivated by helping people and the fulfillment he gets out of it. He has always had an interest in policing and helping the community, so when he found an opportunity to join the City of Port Coquitlam’s Community Policing (CP) team he was excited to be able to do both. Prior to volunteering with CP, Aidan was involved in his high school studies and has now started into his post-secondary journey.

Over the past year, Aidan’s dedication and knowledge have contributed to the success of a variety of Community Policing programs and events. He started out in the patrol program, learning from some of the leaders in that group and quickly becoming a leader himself.  Aidan has journeyed throughout PoCo for hundreds of kilometers via bike and foot, helping to keep residents safe by providing extra eyes and ears for the police throughout the community. One community patrol that turned out to be a particular favourite took place at an August End of Summer event, where the Community Police participated with Fire Safety and Prevention. Aidan had the chance to operate a fire hose and he feels like the connection between all the City departments was one of his favourite memories from volunteering to date. “As patrollers, we don’t only support the RCMP but we support the rest of the City by helping report items like burnt out bulbs, overflowing drains, illegal dumping, bylaw issues, fire concerns, checking on little libraries, and more. It truly is an overall approach to safety in the community.”

Aidan is always encouraging others to volunteer with the Community Police program, and recently took on a new role himself, working the  front counter offices at the City’s two Community Police Stations located on Mary Hill Road and Coast Meridian Road. At the Community Police Stations, community volunteers like Aidan are trained to help people make police reports, walk them through options available to them during a time of need, and provide community safety partner resources and crime prevention materials. The hours vary but Aidan has been dedicated weekly to keep the office open to serve the community.

When he isn’t hosting patrols or keeping our Community Police Stations open, Aidan enjoys going to the gym and playing video games.  He wants to say to those out there “who have a disability or a condition that you think would prevent/hinder you from volunteering/anything really, don’t give up, I got Type 1 Diabetes back is 2019 and I’m still kicking. If I can do it, so can you!”

The City would like to thank Aidan for making such a positive impact on the community and positive leadership with our volunteers!

Learn how you can gain valuable work experience, explore career possibilities and become more involved in your community – volunteer today! To learn more about the Community Policing program, visit www.portcoquitlam.ca/cp.