Andrea Lamothe: It Takes a Village to Heal Those Who Serve and Protect

By Heather Hogan

What’s it like working in a 911 Call Centre for almost 30 years? Andrea Lamothe listens – in real-time – to someone’s worst day every day. Yet, despite the high-stress environment, which is short-staffed, the Civilian Director of the Ottawa Police Association still loves what she does.

Andrea was born in Thunder Bay, and being an OPP kid, she moved all around Ontario. Presently she lives in Ottawa but, is still a northerner at heart. Her passion for travelling takes her to the far-flung corners of the globe.

Proud, strong, and self-reliant, her personality perfectly matches her career in emergency services. She comes from a family with a strong public service tradition – her father and her brother are police officers, and her mother is a nurse.

Those who choose a career in emergency services need to develop resilience in moments of adversity, and Andrea is no different, she demonstrates selflessness by helping others when they need it the most.

Like her parents, integrity is integral to Andrea, and she is not afraid to speak out. She was raised to stand up for what is right and use her voice.

A tough skin masks PTSD

“It takes a special person to do this job,” says Andrea. “We may appear to have tougher skin because of what we experience at work, but I am acutely aware that we are all human beings and share the same frailties as anyone else. It’s okay to struggle sometimes, and our exposure inevitably causes us to feel deep trauma, bringing us to our brink.”

Each year on December 8th at 5:35 p.m. Andrea pauses – because she will never forget the experience of the horrific murder of a young woman during a 911 call.

“All I could do was listen to her scream while she died,” says Andrea. “Her anguish will always stay with me.”

She took time away from work for several months to process that distressing experience. “My goal, even when I was off, was … I’m coming back because I love my job,” said Andrea.

She describes the real struggles of doing the job, and it often takes help from fellow members to get through such traumatic events.

As a Civilian Director with the Police Association Ontario for two years, Andrea says the experience made her stronger and similar situations frequently occur for her colleagues too. It inspires her to do all she can to check in and take care of her co-workers, and she can also relate to anyone else dealing with emotional and mental trauma.

Andrea was also Civilian Director with the Canadian Police Association for five years. Now in her sixth term with the Ottawa Police Association, when she first started on the board, police officers were starting to get 369 built into their bargaining agreements.

“There was nothing implemented for civilians working in the service. All we had for civilians was a mere $500 after working for 20 years. During bargaining, I was instrumental in ensuring longevity pay was introduced into our agreements,” said Andrea.

Things have improved since then, and now even new hires have some assurances.

Benevolent Fund helps families of fallen members

Andrea is proud of helping to create the Ottawa Police Association’s Benevolent Fund to help support families of fallen members. This fund is solely funded by members helping members through the OPA golf tournament and donations.

She considers herself fortunate to be a part of an association with such a strong voice. We all have struggles; we must band together to endure these struggles. Andrea encourages other associations to use their voices and share their key messages.

“People need to be educated about what’s going on in our policing world,” said Andrea. “It’s our job to protect and advance our members’ collective rights.”

She means it too. If the membership’s voice is not heard, “we’re going to have to push back.”

Setting a table of welcome and support for spouses and partners

Andrea is lending her voice while personally extending a hand to support the spouses of fallen on-duty officers across Canada through SOLE (Survivors of Law Enforcement).

She organizes a dinner for them every year on the Saturday night of the Canadian Police and Peace Officers Memorial. She is proud of these brave men and women and considers herself fortunate to have the opportunity to know them.

“Right now, officers are being attacked, maimed and even killed at an alarming rate. We are pushing for bail reform for repeat and violent offenders. Enough is enough! We need more people, we need help. We can’t keep losing officers. We need better protections and its time to protect the protectors.”

Andrea has been connecting with families more often than she likes and dreads having to add another plate to the table. She regularly contacts spouses when an officer dies and, lately, more frequently at funerals.

“I can’t imagine being in their position. They are the strongest men and women I’ve ever met. And again, they’ve made me a better person because when I’m having a bad day, I think of them, and my day isn’t so bad, thinking about who they’ve lost,” said Andrea.

“They are great pillars of strength,” said Andrea. “It’s incredible to watch when a new widow or widower has lost a partner in the line of duty, they swoop in and take them under their wing.”

The annual SOLE dinner was meant to create a safe, intimate space for them to connect and share. This year we hosted the First SOLE retreat which was held in Toronto on Ontario Memorial weekend. This was created so they can have more time with each other, catch up, share stories, talk about their kids, and ask questions.

It was a great success and look forward to the years to come.

Andrea emphasizes that it truly takes a village – a community – to get through this job. Never unscathed, but with a renewed sense of strength and pride.