Robert “Bob” Rogalski had a lifetime of memories on his hands; a collection of stories from his 28 years while serving with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Rogalski later served as a Field Training Officer, teaching courses all over western Canada where he not only began to share some of his wisdom, but heard stories from others about their time spent with different police departments.
“It’s a project that’s been hanging around for 30 years,” Rogalski told the Langley Advance Times, but finally all those stories have been written down and published as a two-volume book.
What Cops Talk About Over Coffee is a collection of memories from police officers across Canada – and some outside jurisdictions – which include firsthand accounts of situations they have encountered in their careers from the 1950s through to 2012.
Rogalski said his own recollections and stories are mixed in with accounts from colleagues and friends, all coming together to pose as a snapshot of the type of conversations or “shop talk” two police officers might have during their coffee break.
“These accounts are both heartwarming and humorous, some are frightening; others offer some insight into the human spirit…they are real stories told by real heroes,” Rogalski says in the description of the book.
“You have to be careful because you are dealing with a crisis that happened in people’s lives,” he added, noting that privacy was taken into account when he was writing.
The 73-year-old retiree said he has been enjoying his retirement, notably scoring a “perfect hand” in cribbage late last year with his seniors cribbage group at Glenwood Estates.
READ MORE: A perfect hand: Langley man beats the odds in cribbage
Rogalski said the purpose of writing it was to recognize and give credit to those who served their department well.
“It was a blast in putting it together,” he assured, laughing that he had written so much, the book had to be split into two volumes.
“I’ve had a lot of great feedback from retired members of the force who tell me it’s a nice, easy read,” Rogalski said.
The retired RCMP officer self published the book through Victoria-based company Tellwell Talent and officially released the books in March.
Anyone interested in purchasing a copy can visit Amazon.ca or contact Rogalski directly at rogy1@shaw.ca.
Rogalski has been married for 47 years to his wife, Shirley. They have two sons, Ian and Jason and two grandchildren.
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Email: ryan.uytdewilligen@langleyadvancetimes.com
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