After nine and a half months spent in war-torn Afghanistan training local police, RCMP Cpl. Mark Lundie came home in time to spend Christmas with his family in Steveston.
For years, the 40-year-old married father of two young children had been yearning to go to Afghanistan to help its people.
Finally, last January 2011, the longtime Richmond resident got his wish.
"I was stationed there for nine and a half months alongside 45 Canadian civilian police from across the country," said Lundie, who is a national security specialist in B.C.
Lundie was part of the Canadian Civilian Police Team (CIVPOL), in Afghanistan to train, mentor and advise the Afghan National Police.
Lundie was stationed in Kabul as part of Operation Attention, which was a new training mission set up to help local police.
"One of our challenges going in was to build trust between the Afghan police and locals," he said.
"We were also trying to build and develop police functions and bring the local police up to standard so they could stand on their own two feet once we left."
For the Canadian troops there, Afghanistan was split into two missions - NTMA, which stands for NATO Training Mission Afghanistan, to help build ministerial Afghan anticrime police force and counter-terrorism.
"I worked within the NTMA in counter-terrorism, advising and mentoring the general in the Afghan Police," said Lundie. "It was extremely dangerous territory, and yes, I felt fear sometimes."
The other mission was the European Union Police or EUPOL, which was in charge of development of the Afghan National Police.
Even though it was dangerous at times, Lundie said he knew what he was in for, having served in the Balkans.
"I knew what I was getting into - one day everything was fine and the next day could be hellish."
Even though Lundie was stationed within the Green Zone, which is suppose to be a secure zone in what Lundie dubbed "the Shaughnessy area of Kabul," he still experienced two attacks.
"I was in an area called Wazir Akbar Khan, said to be the wealthiest and safest area of the city," he said, adding the camp was home to 3,000 soldiers, police and civilians from 37 countries.
"Last September, the U.S. and NATO embassies were attacked, and my compound was close to both."
However, there were so many memorable moments as well.
"Canada Day was a wonderful get-together and on Fridays, the Canadian troops got together for barbecue night," he said. "We'd sit on the roof of the Canada House, which was a small recreation centre and we'd barbecue - it was surreal.
"There you are, everybody in shorts wearing a gun, and you're barbecuing."
There was also the time spent with the children. Next to Lundie's camp was a German private school.
"Some of the kids in daycare had fathers who were killed on duty and moms who worked long hours to support them," Lundie said. "But, wherever you are in the world, kids are kids."
What surprised him most was that everybody had a cell phone.
"You'd see a guy driving a donkey, looking like he just came out of the 14th century, and he was texting away," he quipped.
The News interviewed Lundie back in 2006 for a Remembrance Day feature.
He told us his family immigrated to Canada from Scotland in 1980, moving to Steveston.
He had said then that he'd always wanted to be part of the army.
Lundie joined the Sea Cadets at 13 and at 14 joined the Seaforth Highlanders of Canada. Two weeks shy of his 17th birthday, he trained in the army reserves. The young reservist trained in infantry combat, which included defensive and offensive operations, as well as patrolling duties.
Lundie had said then that he wouldn't hesitate if called to fight for his country.
He didn't.
Lundie ended up in the former Yugoslavia in the Republic of Croatia in the Serb autonomous region of Krajina.
He was then sent to Medak on the second battalion Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry that was attempting to stop the Croatian army from carrying out ethnic cleansing. That's where he saw the atrocities of war and came home to Steveston a changed man.
That was then, Lundie said.
Today, he credits his wife June for supporting his wish to go to Afghanistan.
"She was initially worried, but she shouldered on for nine and a half months - it wasn't easy for her," he said. "I did come home twice on leave while I was there, but still it was hard sometimes for her."
When asked if this deployment changed him, Lundie paused and answered: "You know, it doesn't change you all for the bad. You appreciate your country and our Charter of Rights and Freedoms more, which Afghanistan doesn't have. There, Afghans worry about being able to afford to heat their homes and feed their children."
"I worked with Afghans on a daily basis and I got to see the risks they live with and what they have and don't have."
Meanwhile, Lundie said the Afghans have a lot of respect for Canadians.
"We bring a lot to the table because we bring a very specific skill set to the table," he added. "Canada is the only country that has civilian police out with their soldiers operationally in Afghanistan.
"We taught them about Canadian policing strategies to help solve problems- We are known for our 'can do' approach."
