On Aug. 12, 1998, Cst. David Nicholson went into the Parkhill Dam to search for a missing 12-year-old boy named Mark Gage.
Nicholson’s body was found three days later, with Gage’s in his arms.
The air tank Nicholson was using became wedged underwater, and the lifeline he was using snapped.
Two decades later, the Waterloo Regional Police Service planned to hold a memorial for them both on the same date this year.
It was scheduled for Sunday, Aug. 12 at 9:30 a.m. at Mill Race Park in Cambridge.
Police officers also planned to wear a pin with Nicholson's badge number 589 on it.
For his family, the tribute showed that the community still cares.
“It’s pretty incredible how many people will, as soon as they find out, somehow or another that I’m Dave’s son, they will break down and cry, or they’ll hug me,” said Mitch Nicholson.
Cst. Nicholson was the first person to die in the line of duty in the service’s history.
