VPD Chief Constable's Commendation: Constable Bill Taylor
Channel: Vancouver Police Department
Date: 15/03/2019

For almost ten years, Vancouver Police Constable Bill Taylor has been dedicated to a memorial project to recognize and honour the Department’s fallen officers. While researching the location of their burial sites, he discovered that their headstones made no mention that they died in the line of duty. Chief Constable Malcolm MacLennan, who was killed in 1917 as he attempted to arrest a barricaded gunman, did not even have a headstone.

Constable Taylor sought and received funding from the Vancouver Police Foundation for plaques recognizing the officers’ ultimate sacrifices, and also for a headstone for Chief Constable MacLennan. He designed the plaques, worked with cemeteries to have them installed, and organized graveside memorial services once each installation was complete. While many of the officers were buried locally, Constable Taylor also travelled to Inkerman, Ontario, and Carievale, Saskatchewan, to ensure each fallen officer was recognized.

Constable Taylor worked with the VPD Ceremonial Unit, VPD Executive, Vancouver Police Museum, and the surviving family members of the fallen officers. He created a lasting impression on past and serving VPD officers by fostering a greater sense of pride and a better appreciation of departmental history.

For paying tribute to the VPD’s fallen officers, honouring them and their families in a poignant and dignified manner, and demonstrating that they shall truly never be forgotten, Constable Bill Taylor was awarded the Chief Constable’s Commendation.