Advocates for workplace safety remember John Petropoulos at 25th anniversary event

The John Petropoulos Memorial Fund marks 25 years of promoting workplace safety.

The John Petropoulos Memorial Fund celebrated its 25th anniversary Saturday night, with some laughter and some tears.

The organization was created by Maryanne Pope and three others, after Pope’s husband John Petropoulos, a Calgary police officer, died in the line of duty when he attended a break-and-enter call, where he stepped through a false ceiling because there was no safety railing in place.

“He fell and hit his head and died of brain injuries at the age of 32,” Pope said, “so a lot of the people here this evening, actually, it’s going to be a very amazing reunion. There’ll be a lot of tears and a lot of laughter and a lot of reunions going on.”

“A lot of people knew John,” she continued. “A lot of his friends, my friends, my family, John’s family, police, workplace safety people -- there’s all sorts of people who have come out to support this very special evening and commemorate, you know, 25 years of raising awareness about workplace safety, as well as remembering a great guy.”

Board chair and co-founder Cliff O’Brien said workplace safety remains a concern right across Canada.

“Since John’s death, every year, we have 1,000 workers that die in this country, either because of an occupational injury or an occupational, you know, health illness -- that’s unacceptable,” he said.

O’Brien said it’s particularly important to be sensitive to the vulnerability of first responders who work in unfamiliar environments, often at odd hours of the day or night.

“We (first responders) don’t get to dictate where the emergencies are, (or) where our workplace is,” O’Brien said. “If you’re an emergency service personnel, it could be at the side of the road, could be at somebody’s house, in a business.

“We don’t we don’t know where it’s going to be,” he added. “And so what we’re really trying to do is get people to look at their premise, their workplace, and just make sure it’s safe, safe for emergency service personnel that could be in there when it’s dark. It could be in there under stress.

“And if you see flashing lights on the side of the road, slow down and move over,” O’Brien added, “because you could be saving a life.”

Pope recommended checking out the organization’s website, which contains a link to its YouTube channel.

For more information about the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund, go here.