Thousands showed up to Planet Ice on Saturday to honour Const. Rick O鈥橞rien with a smile.

One of those many smiling faces was that of O鈥橞rien鈥檚 widow Nicole Longacre-O鈥橞rien who said she was moved by the sheer amount of people from the community who showed up to celebrate her late husband鈥檚 legacy.

What a great way to celebrate a life gone far too soon

The Ridge Meadows RCMP officer was memorialized with the First Annual Cst. Rick O鈥橞rien Joint Forces Jamboree, which pitted teams of local youth and first responders up against one another in an afternoon of recreational ball hockey.

Outside of the arena, there was also plenty for people to enjoy, including food trucks and more than a dozen booths with first responders and local community groups.

Despite the wet weather, people came out in droves to honour the officer who was shot and killed in the line of duty when executing a search warrant in Coquitlam last September.

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鈥淚 had a vision for this event and this exceeds it,鈥� said Longacre-O鈥橞rien. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think I can wipe the smile off of my face today because this is a reflection of how much love there is for Rick. It鈥檚 blown me away.鈥�

One of the people to show Const. O鈥橞rien some love was Supt. Wendy Mehat of the Ridge Meadows RCMP who delivered the opening speech of the event.

鈥淩ick dedicated his life to serving our community and his love for children is unparalleled,鈥� said Mehat.

She also pointed out that Const. O鈥橞rien had a deep love of hockey and would have been so happy to have people celebrate his life with a ball hockey tournament.

With the inaugural tournament being such an overwhelming success, Longacre-O鈥橞rien said she鈥檚 already looking forward to hosting it again next year.