The first open house following the amalgamation of Chilliwack’s two Royal Canadian Legion branches will be happening this coming weekend.
This week (Oct. 10 to 16) is Legion Week in B.C. and to celebrate there will be an open house on Saturday, Oct. 16 at Branch 280 in Vedder.
“The open house will display what the Legion has to offer and what we are all about. We also hope to have displays by some of our community partners,” the Legion stated in a press release.
The event is one of several taking place throughout the province this week.
The BC/Yukon Command of the Royal Canadian Legion is hosting events in 42 communities across B.C. and the Yukon to celebrate Legion Week 2021.
“Legion Week community events build momentum leading up to the Poppy Campaign and Remembrance Day and honours the duty, service and sacrifice of our veterans,” said Val MacGregor, president of the BC/Yukon Command.
Locally, on Oct. 16, folks can learn about how the Royal Canadian Legion supports and honours veterans and their families, including RCMP, and promotes remembrance.
This year also marks the 100th anniversary of the poppy.
Madame Anna Guérin, later christened “The Poppy Lady from France,” was inspired by John McCrae’s poem In Flanders Fields and had an idea: to adopt the distribution of the poppy on Armistice Day as a way to raise money for veterans’ needs and to remember those who had given their lives during the First World War.
In July of 1921, the Great War Veterans Association (which in 1925 would unify with other veteran groups to form the Royal Canadian Legion) adopted the poppy as the flower of remembrance.
“During Legion Week, our branches celebrate our communities,” MacGregor said. “The 100th anniversary of the poppy causes us to pause and remember our veterans and the Canadian values our veterans fought for so our communities could be safe, strong and free.”
The original local Legion (Branch 4) has 95 years of history in Chilliwack. Branch 4 and the Vedder Golden Branch 280 amalgamated earlier this year.
READ MORE: Chilliwack’s Royal Canadian Legion branches amalgamate to become ‘one strong legion’
Members of Branch 4 moved into the Vedder location in September when Branch 4 closed its doors forever. The new branch will be known as the Chilliwack-Vedder Branch 295.
READ MORE: Flag lowered as Chilliwack Branch 4 Legion closes forever
The open house takes place Saturday, Oct. 16 at 5661 Vedder Rd. from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Everyone is welcome and there will also be a free hot dog barbecue and refreshments. Those who want to become a member of the Legion can sign up for free (for the first year) that day.
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