Meet Parry Sound’s new police officer.
PC Rob McKnight joined the West Parry Sound Detachment on September 3.
Roland Cilliers/Beacon Star
PARRY SOUND - There’s no such thing as an average day when you’re policing Parry Sound.
For Police Constable Rob McKnight, one of the newest members of the local detachment of the OPP, a day can entail everything from enforcing traffic laws to helping keep children safe during a Terry Fox Run.
McKnight, who started in the region on September 3, said the diversity in his daily tasks is the best part of the job.
“It’s great because you get to put on many different hats,” McKnight said. “You get to work with the community one day doing stuff like a Terry Fox Run and you meet new people in the community. Then another day you’re going to be responding to calls for service or doing traffic enforcement. The variety of work you do keeps it pretty interesting.”
While still new to the region, McKnight, who hails from Sudbury, said he loves the Parry Sound community. He said the people are friendly and the surroundings are beautiful.
Before going through the almost two-year process to become a police officer, McKnight was attending Laurentian University for history and planning on pursuing a career in education. About halfway through his time at the school, McKnight decided that law enforcement was the right career path for him.
The vast array of potential situations that an OPP officer is expected to deal with is McKnight’s favorite part of the job, but it’s also the cause of the biggest challenge.
“You’re expected to know everything right away. There’s a big learning curve to learn the day-to-day activities and how to respond to different situations,” said McKnight. “That’s the biggest challenge for me.”
A fast learner, McKnight is being run through his paces and taking on a wide range of responsibilities with the detachment. One can expect to see him patrolling the region well into the foreseeable future.