Constable Geoffrey Kurtz graduated from the Police Academy at the Justice Institute of BC on March 8, 2024. Before enrolling in the academy, he was an ironworker. Prior to his policing education, he had graduated from Pemberton Secondary School in 2017. His high-school years were spent in Pemberton except for 1/2 year in high-school in Langley. In that same year, he studied at the Ts’zil Learning Centre in Mount Currie in the alternative program that combined grades 11 and 12. Basketball was his main sport in elementary school. He played quarterback with the Pemberton Grizzlies football team. Geoff knew at a young age that he wanted to be a sworn officer, either in military or policing. When he was making a career choice, he auspiciously ran into STPS Sergeant Mike Leo. Sgt Leo guided Geoff in joining the STPS and continued to be a mentor until his untimely death in October 2023. Coincidentally, Geoff had known Sgt. Leo since his younger years. Throughout his childhood, Geoff moved around a lot. Once he became a father, Geoff didn’t want his own children moving around as much. So, the reality was that the choice to join the STPS was the only choice if he wanted to become a police officer. Plus, a big bonus to joining the STPS was that Geoff got to begin his career under the supervision of Sgt. Leo. Another consideration was that members of the Lil’wat community knew who Geoff was because he grew up here. It meant a lot to Geoff to have been assigned as the STPS Community Liaison Officer for the Lil’wat community. When in foster care, Lil’wat explicitly gave permission for Geoff to live in the community. The community gave him a home and a life. As a police officer, Geoff gives back to community with his heart and soul. He sees the community growing, particularly with the new STPS detachment building, the new women’s shelter, the new firetrucks and all of the new housing. He sees the direction that the community is going and he wants to play a part in it and help out where he can. Geoff’s wife is Keisha Morin-James of Lil’wat and his mother-in-law is Athena James. And, Percy ‘PR’ Jones is Keisha’s grandfather. Geoff likes to play video games and hang out with his kids when he is not working. His daughter, Kiana, is 7 years old and his son, Jaxson, is 2 years old.
