Thankfully, I’ve never personally had my house broken into. But even just knowing people who have experienced a break-in compelled me to join the JM Security team and work to ensure everyone has a sense of safety and peace of mind about their home.

My parents remind me of this often, here is their story:

They were living in Vancouver when I was born, and in the 1990s, probably similar to as it is now, crime rates in the area were high.

Due to a bad experience with an alarm system while house-sitting, my mom vowed she would never get a security system. Even after three (unsuccessful) break-in attempts and offers from the landlord to install a system, my mom still refused. Besides, my parents weren’t extremely well-off, she didn’t believe there was anything of value that could be stolen anyways.

What changed her mind?

While they were in Ontario visiting family over Christmas, they got a call from their friend saying that their house had been unfortunately broken into.

When they got back to Vancouver, the feelings of violation and of loss really kicked in. What hurt the most was the fact that items of sentimental value, family heirloom jewellery my mom had  hoped to one day pass on to her daughter, were gone. Also gone were the feeling of safety in their own home.

Once again, their landlord asked if they would like to install a security system. My mom decided to get a second opinion and called their local police department for their advice. Their answer? “Honestly, you only have two smart options: either get an alarm or get a big dog”. 

They didn’t get a dog.

They also never even had another attempted break-in on their house.