Speaker: Patricia ‘Trish’ Ferguson, Deputy Police Chief, Community Policing Command
Topic: “What I learned from 30 years of policing”
Location: The Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club, 1 Hunt Club Road, Ottawa
Date: 15/04/2026
What I learned from 30 years of policing
$ 80.00
Patricia ‘Trish’ Ferguson was drawn to policing at a young age. While studying Criminology at the University of Ottawa ‘Trish’ volunteered with the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) and in 1995 joined the ranks. Through several years of working on patrol, recruiting, as a school resource and involvement in community policing, Trish got to see the power of relationship building and its effectiveness when working with
external partners.
While engaged in many types of investigations over the years, Trish witnessed the courage and strength of survivors and the commitment of the people called to support them through their journey. This work led to committee and advocacy work for victims and survivors including OPS members following critical incidents. In 2017, Trish co-founded the Women’s Employee Resource Group and has driven several other initiatives to improve the culture and working conditions for all OPS members.
In 2018 Trish was promoted to Inspector and worked on the frontline as a Duty Inspector and Critical Incident Commander. During the Pandemic, she led the OPS’ response and in 2023 became the Deputy Chief of the Community Policing Command.