There was a time not too long ago when a search and rescue operation in Coquitlam consisted of the city’s parks and recreation director and a couple of RCMP officers scouring the woods for missing hikers.
Ian Cunnings had a front-row seat to many of those early searches.
His father, Don Cunnings, was the Coquitlam parks manager when the city decided it needed its own specialized local team following the death in 1972 of a missing person on Burke Mountain.
“They had to do a body recovery using North Shore Rescue because there wasn’t anybody in Coquitlam,” Ian Cunnings said. “After that, it was decided to form a ground search and rescue group.”
Cunnings remembers attending weekend training sessions as a child with his father, who was one of the first members of the Coquitlam Search and Rescue team.
Slowly, the younger Cunnings got involved as well, and was recently awarded the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers after 35 years of service. The 53-year-old was joined by his wife, father, mother and Lt. Gov. Judith Guichon last week at Government House in Victoria, where he formally received the recognition.
“It was a very humbling experience,” he said. “There are 80 ground search and rescue programs in the province and anyone at any of those groups would be well deserving.”
For Cunnings, the award marks a long history with search and rescue dating back to when he was still a high school student at Centennial secondary. He said he was drawn to the sense of camaraderie and an interest in the outdoors that is shared by many on the team.
“It is an extension of my recreation,” he said. “The folks on the team are hikers, skiers, mountain bikers, mountaineers. You pick an activity and there is someone involved in it. We are always organizing social activities.”
He added that the level of experience and preparation among members of Coquitlam Search and Rescue makes the team and the public safer.
“We are there to help.”
@gmckennaTC
