- Captain Cora Doubell served in the South African Police Services for over 30 years.
- Captain Cora Doubell wanted to become a policewoman to end abuse against women.
- After being medically boarded, Captain Cora Doubell used her experience to work towards reducing crime in the Kouga region.
After serving in the South African Police Services for over 30 years, Captain Cora Doubell was medically boarded in 2021. Her dedication to serving others did not end there; instead she turned her focus to help reducing crime in the Kouga region through her involvement with various crime prevention initiatives.
After learning about Doubell’s inspirational story through the Kouga Powerful Woman Competition, Kouga Express was eager to learn more about the former woman-in-blue and how she remained committed to serving her community to the best of her ability.
Growing up in a difficult environment where she was raped and abused, she knew she wanted to become a policewoman to work towards ending abuse against women.
After qualifying as a police officer, and later as a police instructor, Doubell was fortunate to work in various fields and travel all over the country.
Even though she had many great experiences within the SAPS, one of the highlights of her career included receiving an Excellence Award in 2018, at the Tshwane Central Cluster Excellence Awards, for work that she had completed while working at the SAPS Management Information Centre in Pretoria.
Another highlight included being handpicked by SAPS management to serve as one of 200 VIP police officers within President Cyril Ramaphosa’s direct movement during his inauguration in 2019 where over 60 000 people were in attendance.
Doubell said that on the day there were 2 000 police officers on duty at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria where the inauguration was held, and she formed part of the 200 police officers in his direct environment ensuring he was always kept safe.
To add to the uniqueness of the experience, she said that she was one of two women chosen to form part of the 200 officers.
“It is a man’s world and people don’t expect women to be part of a security team responsible for protecting the president,” said Doubell.
“An opportunity like this would not mean much to others, but it meant a lot to us as women to serve as police officers at such a prestigious event.”
Unfortunately, after over 30 years of service, she was attacked while on duty and because of her injuries left disabled.
As a result, in 2021 Doubell was medically boarded.
She then moved with her family to Jeffreys Bay after working in Pretoria for over seven years.
Doubell had previously worked at the Jeffreys Bay Police Station from 2010 to 2016, where she was the vice-chairperson of the trauma centre in 2014 and 2015 enabling her to assist with rape and domestic violence victims alongside Dean Gilbert, chairperson of the trauma centre, and Maryke Pretorius, traumatologist at the centre.
Since she was familiar with the area, when she returned in 2021, she quickly immersed herself in the community and was ready to roll up her sleeves to assist where she could.
“My expertise gained through the various fields that I have worked in, my skills, knowledge and because I know the area and the people, were a recipe for success,” said Doubell.
While continuing to serve her community through the various crime prevention initiatives, she was appointed secretary for both the Aston Bay Ratepayers Association and the community crime prevention initiative, Safer JBay.
Doubell said that as the secretary of Aston Bay Ratepayers Association she is required to deal with problems faced within the community, such as the state of the roads and issues with water.
As the secretary of Safer JBay she serves as a connection between the community and the various security fraternities, such as Boots on the Ground, private security companies, law enforcement, local SAPS and Neighbourhood Watches.
In addition to her involvement with the Aston Bay Ratepayers Association and Safer JBay, Doubell also joined Boots on the Ground, Kouga Municipality’s crime prevention initiative, in November 2022, when it was established to curb crime during the festive season.
When Boots on the Ground was initiated again in March this year, after requests made by residents for the return of the crime prevention initiative, she was appointed as the co-ordinator of the group of 17 volunteers.
Since returning to Jeffreys Bay, Doubell and her husband, Captain Dominique Doubell – the Vispol Commander at Jeffreys Bay Police Station, who she refers to as her “crime fighting buddy,” – have worked hard to gain the trust of the community they diligently serve.
“We have a good relationship with the community, because they trust us to help them when needed,” said Doubell.
“To ensure that the community trusts us we always remain open, honest and transparent.”
Despite making great strides in the fight against crime, Doubell said that they rely on the community to be their “eyes and ears”.
In addition, to her work within the various community initiatives, using her experience as a police officer and as a victim of violence, she also does motivational speeches at schools, churches, and various events, where she motivates both adults and teenagers to stand up against violence, bullying, gangsterism and gender-based violence.
Furthermore, she hosts workshops with victims of abuse and regular group meetings with parents who are against drug use in the community.
