Gareth’s pride during emotional memorial service

2 October 2019

Attending Sunday’s National Police Memorial Day (NPMD) service made Hertfordshire Police Federation workplace representative Gareth Rees feel proud to be a British police officer.

Gareth joined a congregation of around 1,500 people at the service which was held in Glasgow’s Royal Concert Hall and was attended by HRH The Prince of Wales.

 “The memorial day is an emotional event and, for me, it is really quite personal. I was badly injured on duty back in 2008 and was lucky to survive. My wife was three months’ pregnant at the time and had the knock on the door in the middle of the night where she was told to prepare for the worst,” says Gareth.

 “I’ve been through that whole emotional rollercoaster with my family so can identify with what survivor families go through. I also lost a good friend back in 2012, PC David Rathband who succumbed to injuries after being shot twice in the head by Raoul Moat in Northumbria.

 “I’ll admit every year I have a good cry in the auditorium when the names are read out and ‘Abide with Me’ is played and The Last Post is sounded accompanied by falling petals.”

Gareth was also touched that US Secret Service Special Agent Nole Remagen, who died while working on US President Donald Trump’s visit to Scotland last year, was remembered in the roll call and filmed the moment to send to friends in America who worked with Noel.

Gareth has attended memorial day services both here and in the United States and is one of a number of organisers to participate in a UK Police Guard of Honour that attends Washington DC in May every year for the US Police Memorial Week Event.

He was at the NPMD services in London in 2016, Cardiff in 2017 and Belfast in 2018 but said this year’s service was particularly well done.

“It had a real personal and intimate feel about it. There was a lot of emotion in that hall during the service given the number of fallen officers and the recent timing. I was very impressed with the organisation of the event and the attention to detail,” Gareth explained.

Read more about the NPMD service