Const. Scott Nickel’s recent meeting with a unique group of kids would take him back to a challenging time in his life.

The Surrey Mountie recalls how, when he was 14 and recovering from cancer surgery at Ward 3B at BC Children’s Hospital, an older cancer survivor came by to give a pep talk.

He was told that while things were rough – he was going through seven months of chemotherapy after a stomach tumour was removed – it was important to remain positive and look to the future.

This summer, Nickel, now a 30-year-old police officer with two-and-a-half years on duty, came to the Canadian Cancer Society’s Camp Goodtimes at Loon Lake in Maple Ridge.

“I was just introduced as Constable Scott,” he says with a grin.

Nickel wasn’t there to impress them, though. He was there to motivate them as they struggle with cancer.

“Fight through it and do what you want to do,” was his message.

The camp, run by about 300 volunteers, including doctors and nurses, provides week-long summer experiences for child and teen cancer survivors throughout B.C.

It’s free and no child who wants to go is turned away.

It wasn’t the first time with Camp Goodtimes for Nickel. At 14, he spent a week with the camp’s then-existing winter program, tubing, snowboarding and skiing at Apex Mountain Resort west of Penticton.

He was given a clean bill of health five years after a long series of medical follow-ups, and was cleared to proceed for RCMP training when he made that career move.

“They were fully aware of my past.”

This year, Nickel will take part in this fall’s Cops for Cancer - Tour de Valley bike ride.

He regularly trains for the nine-day ride when off-duty.

Nickel credits his recovery from cancer due to the fact that his cancer was caught early, as well as the experimental treatment he received.

“The research was funded by rides like this.”

The Canadian Cancer Society’s Cops for Cancer - Tour de Valley bike ride fundraiser takes place Sept. 24 to Oct. 2. For more information or to make a donation, visit www.cancer.ca, click on British Columbia and the Cops for Cancer link. Or you can call Nicola Harper at 604-533-1227 or e-mail nharper@bc.cancer.ca

bjoseph@surreyleader.com