About Me
I’m a Pastor and Emergency Services Chaplain with a deep calling to walk alongside people in their darkest moments and point them toward hope, healing, and the light of Christ.
Born in the 1970s in the north end of St. Catharines, Ontario, I grew up in a loving Christian home shaped by strong faith. My father, Rev. Robert A. Davidson, was a pastor who led me to a personal relationship with Jesus. Ministry truly runs in our family—since a powerful spiritual awakening that began with my uncle Jack in the 1950s, fifteen family members have been called into pastoral ministry.
From a young age I felt drawn to help people, protect the vulnerable, and push back against evil. Initially, I pursued that calling in a very practical way by serving 31 years in law enforcement with Peel Regional Police and the Ontario Provincial Police. Those decades on the front lines gave me a sobering, front-row view of human brokenness and suffering. I carry countless stories—some heroic, many heartbreaking—that left deep moral and emotional wounds. Like many first responders, I pressed the pain down, put on a brave face, and told no one. Over time, that inner struggle led to a diagnosis of PTSD, nightmares, anger, and a faith that had grown distant.
Everything changed when I attended an intensive, Christ-centered trauma recovery program in South Carolina that combined peer support with intentional spiritual renewal. One night, after a powerful time of prayer, I slept peacefully for the first time in nearly ten years—no nightmares, no terror. In that moment, God met me in a profound way. I recommitted my life to Christ, embraced spiritual disciplines, and watched Him renew my mind, heal my heart, and completely remove the symptoms of PTSD. Joy returned, along with a clear sense of purpose.
While finishing my final years with the OPP as a Detective Sergeant, I pursued theological studies at McMaster Divinity College and felt called to give back to my brothers and sisters in uniform. I trained in Peer Support and Mental Health First Aid, joined the OPP Peer Support Team, and later accepted a secondment to lead the provincial Healthy Workplace Team. Over the years I walked with hundreds of officers, listening without judgment and connecting them to the resources and hope they needed.
Since retiring from full-time policing, I’ve continued theological training, served as a volunteer firefighter with Grimsby Fire Department since 2000, and was recently ordained. Today I’m privileged to serve as a chaplain with several Niagara-region fire and police services as well as Niagara Health Addiction Recovery Services—offering spiritual care, crisis support, and the life-changing message of the Gospel to first responders, patients, and families in their time of greatest need.
My life is living proof that no one is beyond God’s reach, that trauma does not have to have the final word, and that Christ can redeem even our deepest pain and turn it into a testimony of hope.
I’d be honoured to walk with you, pray with you, or simply listen. You’re not alone.
In His grace,
Rev. Richard Davidson
