Nine-year-old Ahmadali Jaffer summed it up perfectly when asked about Tuesday’s multi-faith junior police academy event at his school, the Az-Zahraa Islamic Academy on No. 5 Road.

“There was this boy, I forgot his name, and he liked the same stuff as me.”

Jaffer said hosting children from the local Christian and Jewish schools was fun and his schoolmate, 11-year-old Mostafa Fahim agreed.

“I think it’s really cool meeting them and being friends with them.”

The Richmond RCMP hosted the first-ever multi-faith police academy which saw as many as 90 students from Bibleway Christian Academy, Richmond Jewish Day School and the Islamic academy take part in marching drills, an obstacle course and a crime-solving exercise in which students saw a theft unfold, and then had to pick out the culprit from a line-up.

“Could he change his clothes that fast?” one student shouted in the classroom outfitted with magnifying glasses and finger-printing pads.

“It’s the guy in the suit,” offered another.

“It was so obvious,” one girl said.

All of the students donned blue junior police academy t-shirts as they got a flavour for what a career in policing might be like.

It also served to form relationships with the RCMP officers who participated.

“Providing a rich multicultural, multi-faith experience is a key objective at our school,” said Az-Zahraa Islamic Academy principal Zainab Dhanani. “Learning what it takes to be an RCMP officer alongside new friends from other schools will be a cherished memory. We commend the RCMP for reaching out to us.”

Rebecca Coen, head of the Richmond Jewish Day School, agreed.

“One of the goals of our school is to teach not only tolerance for people of different faiths and cultural heritages but respect and collaboration with all peoples in the greater community.”

Students were also treated to a visit by the RCMP’s new helicopter during the full-day event.

“Junior Police Academy is a program that provides positive interaction between the police and youth,” Sgt. Steve Corcoran of the community outreach program said.

But for most of the kids, it was just about having fun and meeting new friends..