When 12-year-old Josh Cochrane of Yarmouth, N.S. watched the news of a deadly shooting in Fredericton on Friday, he thought of the fear the responding officers must have felt.
He also thought of the children of the victims whose parents wouldn’t be around to tuck them in at night.
Cochrane wanted to do something to help comfort the grieving community, so he wrote and recorded a tribute song, to the tune of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” called “A Police Hallelujah.”
In the two days since his mother posted his song to Facebook, the video has been viewed more than 300,000 times.
“I wanted the song to show the world their braveness and sacrifice they made to save others,” Cochrane said.
“I believe music heals people, it helps you see from your heart, it helps bring calmness.”
Cochrane said he has received responses from grieving people across the country, including a colleague of Const. Robb Costello and Const. Sara Mae Burns — the two police officers killed — saying Cochrane’s song is helping him and his colleagues through the difficult time.
The young Canadian’s message is just one of many shows of support from people who never knew the victims, but are still grieving with the small New Brunswick city.
Cochrane has now been invited to perform the song at a memorial in Fredericton on Tuesday night.
-with files from Canadian Press