Blue Knight's History
In November of 2011 Lyn-Gale Corp. and Blue Knight Security celebrated a milestone of 30 years in the security industry. In an industry where many companies come and go, Blue Knight Security has stood the test of time.
Lyn-Gale Corp. was founded in the late 50’s and was operated in Toronto, Ontario. Founded by John H Ross Sr. it was utilized as a construction company. These projects were completed with safety security in mind. People have stepped forward with the acronym of CPTED (Crime Prevention through Environmental Design) and fancy terms to describe security design. Back then security alarms and CCTV systems were not nearly responsive as they are today. Lyn-Gale was apparently ahead of their time and just figured security and construction went hand and hand.
John H Ross Jr. worked alongside his father John H Ross Sr. and built many distinctive properties throughout Ontario. John Ross Jr. was dedicated to the community and at one point; he was man of the year in Toronto. John Jr. Served on the Metro Toronto Police Auxiliary unit and aspired to become a police Officer in the future.
John Ross Jr. Decided to leave the family business to become a police officer. John was appointed a police officer in the City of Niagara Falls as well as the City of Fort Erie. John continued his career with what is now the Niagara Regional Police Service. Over the years John continued to work with private security as well as his police career. John was appalled with the lack of security training for security guards in Ontario.
Eventually John H Ross Jr. left the police department and decided to create Blue Knight Security. It was opened under the corporate structure of Lyn-Gale Corp. The company became a provider of security services, including security guards, patrol and alarm response as well as custody and deportation. John always laughed when he read about a security company in Toronto calling themself “cutting edge” and the first to make arrests. They claimed to be the first to create authoritative uniforms and carry cuffs and batons. Years before the Toronto Company was even formed, John had highly dressed security guards. Blue knight was licensed and provided armed and unarmed security guards. All guards were outfitted with body amour and had the best equipment on the market. Security guards had the stigma of being the sleeping old man working nights.
Being a former police officer John worked closely with various police agencies assisting with drug investigations and problematic youth removal. Our Security guards have always been licensed and been provided with the best possible security training. John had always believed ongoing security training in Ontario was vital to attracting clients as well as retaining them. John did not look at Blue Knight Security as “cutting edge”, but rather the way business was supposed to be done.
In 2004 Ron Hazell merged his company with Blue Knight Security and Joined John as Vice President of Operations and they began to expand in the security guard business. Blue Knight opened a Hamilton office and began to serve, Hamilton, Halton and Niagara Regions. Known for providing top quality security guards and patrol services, Blue Knight Security quickly grew in these areas. Even prior to bill 159 being active, Blue Knight Security continued to provide their security guards with the best security training available. All security guards were upgraded to higher standards and Blue Knight Security began training there security guards online.
Ron and John worked well together and shared many of the same philosophies, with respect to providing security guards. They were very proud of the level of training their security guards received. There were especially pleased with their mobile patrol unit. John always told Ron “Crawl before you walk” This meaning was simple. Don’t cut the quality of service, just to get more clients.
Sadly John suffered a stroke in January of 2009 and succumbed to the stroke in April of 2009. This was the end of an era where we truly lost a gentleman. The loss of john was devastating and it became even clearer that Blue Knight Security had to continue on.
Ron Hazell had stepped in as Acting President and Chief of Services, when John became ill. Upon the passing of John Ross, Ron became the President of Lyn-Gale Corp.
The corporate re- structuring of Blue Knight Security began and Craig Doig was appointed as Vice-President of Operations. Craig became responsible for the day to day operations of the company as well as Human Resources.
There has been many changes within the security industry and Ron and Craig worked closely re-establish Blue Knight Security as an industry leader. We basically polished up an old diamond. At the same time they had to revamp a company to be in compliance with the incoming BILL 159.
Several things needed to change and therefore our security fleet was rebranded with two-tone vehicles, uniforms were changed. A rigid internal security training program was established. This was done with Blue Knight’s history as well as the mandated requirements for security training of security guards in Ontario.
In 2011 Blue Knight Security moved all operations to a central command Centre located in Hamilton. This Centre was set up for security guard training as well as a central hub. This relocation allowed us to remain competitive in the industry.
Blue Knight Security’s commitment to client satisfaction and high level of training for our guards, will allow us to continue another 30 years. Our continued commitment to “finding the right people for the job” allows us to excel above the rest.
We often say we may not be the largest security company in Ontario, but we are definitely run by passion and a love for the industry. We are not in this for a quick buck; we believe we provide the best security guards in the market as well as security training.
Blue Knight Security has emerged as a leader in Ontario, providing security guard training in the digital age. We have cutting edge online security training programs. Current expansion plans are under way to operate in the United Stated of America.
