Family members follow the urn containing the remains of slain Truro polce officer Catherine Campbell is carried down the steps of First Presbyterian Church following a funeral service in Stellarton, N.S. on Monday, Sept.21, 2015. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Pittman

STELLARTON, N.S. - An off-duty police officer whose body was found near the foot of a bridge in Halifax was remembered Monday as "sweet and strong" in a funeral service that saw police officers and firefighters line a street in Stellarton, N.S., in her honour.

Hundreds of people attended the service at the First Presbyterian church in Catherine Campbell's hometown and heard her aunt, Mandy Wong, describe her niece as an adventurous person who also had a gentle touch with children. She remembered how Campbell would often bend down on her knee to speak to children to ensure they weren't afraid of police officers.

"She never would have imagined the effect she would have," she said. "Catherine was brave and beautiful and sweet and strong."

Eddie Stewart, a retired volunteer firefighter, placed a firefighter's helmet in a hearse after the service.

He described Campbell, who was 36, as a vivacious woman who one minute would grab a tool belt and help someone build their deck, and the next be wearing a party dress and "be looking great."

Mike O'Sullivan, who served with Campbell during her 10 years as a volunteer firefighter in Stellarton, said the family is known in the community for its devotion to community service.

"Catherine's been here at the station since she could walk, and it's a terrible loss for our community," he said.

Members of the Truro police service lined the entrance to the church and saluted as Campbell's parents and family arrived.

Campbell's father Dwight, the chief of Stellarton's volunteer fire department, and her mother Susan walked into the church beneath the outstretched cranes of fire trucks from Stellarton and Truro.

Campbell was reported missing on Sept. 14 when she failed to show up for work with the police service in Truro. Halifax police recovered her body last Wednesday below an underpass leading to the Macdonald Bridge that crosses Halifax harbour.

Christopher Calvin Garnier, 27, is charged with second-degree murder in Campbell's death. He is also charged with indecently interfering with a dead body.

O'Sullivan said Campbell's death is incomprehensible.

"She had everything going for her ... for this to happen it's just senseless to begin with," he added. "You think it's going to happen elsewhere. It hits home and it's tough."

Campbell's family has said she held a variety of jobs in the community before deciding to train as a police officer, finding a job in Truro as soon as she graduated six years ago.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2015