Shane Seib Metal Art Gallery
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Statue unveiled in honour of four Alta. MountiesFriday,
August 26, 2005


CTV.ca News Staff
Six months after four RCMP officers were killed on the job in Mayerthorpe, Alberta, a memorial has been unveiled in their honour.
Designed by Shane and Allen Seib, the commemorative sculpture composed of a vibrant RCMP crest, Maple Leaf flag and silhouette of a Mountie on horseback is called 'Never Forgotten'.
Talking to reporters at the ribbon-cutting ceremony in Edmonton on Thursday, RCMP Corporal Wayne Oakes said the name is apropos.
"They should not and will not be forgotten," he said, recalling constables Peter Schiemann, Leo Johnston, Brock Myrol and Tony Gordon -- all of whom died in a shootout at a Quonset hut owned by James Roszko on March 3.
Before the deadly confrontation was over, Roszko turned his gun on himself.
The deaths of the four constables struck hard, marking the single greatest loss of life in the force since the Northwest Rebellion of 1885.
"This memorial is a way to remember," Oakes said, "and allow the community and the province to heal."
But before the sculpture can call Mayerthorpe home, police, businesses and supporters are spearheading a mission to build a dedicated memorial park in the community.
Construction of the park is expected to ring in at approximately $1 million. With $100,000 of that raised so far, residents and supporters of the northwestern Alberta community are now focused on drumming up more financial support.
The youth group Kids 4 Cops, for example, has raised about a third of the total-to-date, by selling pins, t-shirts and a recording of the song 'Heroes Behind the Badge' that Roland Majeau wrote and performed for one of the fallen Mounties' memorial services last spring.
"I guess it just makes me feel really good that so many people are wanting to help the memorial," Kids 4 Cops' Haley Martin told CTV News. "It feels really good."
For now, the memorial statue is on display at RCMP 'K' Division in Edmonton.
Once Mayerthorpe's memorial park is completed late next year, its official unveiling alongside other permanent statues is planned for the two-year anniversary of the tragedy.
Sculptor Shane Seib, who donated the work to police, is looking forward to that sombre anniversary.
"It's not just for these four in Mayerthorpe," Seib told The Canadian Press. "It's for every Mountie, every policeman, who gets their life taken in the line of duty."