Latest news with #RoyalCanadianLegion
CTV News
2 days ago
- General
- CTV News
Yorkton remembers its veterans at memorial service
Regina Watch WATCH: The Royal Canadian Legion in Yorkton holds a memorial service for the community's veterans on Friday. Fruzsina De Cloedt has more.
CTV News
5 days ago
- General
- CTV News
Town of Pincher Creek denies Legion's sidewalk mural request over safety concerns, eyes alternative tribute
A poppy is pinned next to a Royal Canadian Legion crest in Montreal, November 2, 2012. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes) The Town of Pincher Creek has turned down a proposal from the local branch of the Royal Canadian Legion to paint a memorial sidewalk around its building, citing concerns about public safety, liability and long-term maintenance. Legion secretary David Johnson presented the proposal to town council on May 12. 'Earlier, we thought that a crosswalk was a nice idea, but it's very high maintenance,' Johnson told council. 'They're not going to last a long time. We might have to be doing them a couple of times in a year, depending on how much traffic is on them.' The proposal outlined a plan to paint murals on the public sidewalk near the Legion building. It included white rectangles on the west- and south-facing sidewalks at 691 Main St., each featuring soldier silhouettes and other commemorative imagery. Inspired by similar projects in Calgary and Edmonton, the artwork was envisioned as a tribute to those who have served in the Canadian military — in honour of the Royal Canadian Legion's 100th anniversary in 2026, and the local branch's own centennial shortly after. Johnson said the Legion would handle both installation and upkeep using stencils, donated materials and marine-grade paint. 'All we are really looking for is approval,' Johnson said. 'We plan on doing everything using our own people, and hopefully we can get some donations for the paint.' Mayor Don Anderberg asked town administration to gather more information on the proposal and bring it back to council at a future meeting. At the May 26 meeting, town administration presented several concerns for council to weigh before making a decision. While acknowledging the commemorative intent of the project, administration raised questions about the practicality and long-term implications of painting on public sidewalks. Safety topped the list, with staff warning that many paints can become slippery when wet or cold. They recommended using road-grade paint like that used for crosswalks — though even that, they noted, isn't fully proven to work on concrete sidewalks. Administration also suggested alternatives, such as painting murals on the Legion building itself or creating a crosswalk in Legion colours. Another concern was long-term maintenance. While the Legion planned to handle upkeep, the sidewalks are public property, meaning the town would be responsible if the Legion could no longer maintain them. During the discussion, Coun. Mark Barber supported the Legion's revised mural proposal, calling it tasteful and a meaningful way to honour a community institution. However, safety and liability concerns dominated the conversation. Coun. Wayne Oliver echoed support for the Legion's contributions but emphasized the risk of slippery paint on sidewalks and the town's responsibility for public safety. 'We need to be responsible to ensure that we're not sacrificing public safety on wet paint that gets slippery,' Oliver said. 'If this does go forward … all liability for slipping and falling and crashing, I suspect, would fall on us, not the Legion.' Coun. Garry Cleland echoed this, suggesting non-slip grit paint but raising questions about who would maintain the murals and how other future mural requests would be handled. He added that while the concept is meaningful, the town needs clear standards. 'We're also going to be responsible for saying No or Yes to other people who apply to do it,' Cleland said. CAO Konrad Dunbar explained that road paint used on asphalt might not perform well on concrete. He added that public-use paints, even those marketed as non-slip, require regular inspection and maintenance. 'If we go and paint this sidewalk, or we allowed it to be painted with a grit paint and it's wearing off and becomes slippery, we're automatically liable,' Dunbar said. Coun. Sahra Nodge said she would support the project only if a formal funding and maintenance agreement was developed. 'I'm OK supporting this if there's a degree of comfort that you're able to develop some kind of funding and relationship tools that could work with them,' Nodge said. She suggested that if sidewalk murals were to become an option for community celebrations, a broader framework and policy would be needed. Oliver suggested alternatives like freestanding metal silhouettes would be safer and require less maintenance. 'What are other ways or means to accomplish the same end of celebrating the Legion that doesn't have the slipperiness on the sidewalk?' he asked. 'To me, it's appealing to have free-standing steel structures kind of right there, life-size in the grass.' Anderberg thanked the Legion for its ongoing service to the community and emphasized that the decision was based on practical constraints. 'Any paint on cement that I've ever been involved with, it's a hazard,' he said. 'Even though I support the Legion a lot, I can't support this direction.' He also voiced concern about setting a precedent without clear policy. After reviewing these points, council ultimately decided to deny the request. Barber proposed an amended motion to accept the report as information and direct administration to hold further discussions with the Legion to explore safer, alternative possibilities for recognizing those who have served in the Canadian military. The amended motion passed unanimously.
CTV News
29-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
‘We're just worn out': N.B. legion seeks volunteers to avoid closure
Surrounded by carrot peelings and chopped lettuce, a handful of volunteers were hard at work Thursday morning as the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 31 in Salisbury, N.B., prepared about 140 lasagna dinners for the community – a monthly task that is becoming harder and harder to do, according to legion president Susan Dryden. 'Our charter was 90 years old last September and since January between illness and age, my volunteer base has dropped drastically and without a new batch of volunteers, we're forced to look at closing at the end of summer,' she said. 'It's heartbreaking. I've been here for 12 years, going into 13, president for seven, but there's choices that you have to make that we're just worn out, those of us that are left.' On top of the annual poppy campaign, the legion usually does a community supper every month, a Vet Build event every other Sunday, Vets Café once a week, rents out their space to other community groups and provides educational opportunities for youth in the community. Those things are made possible through volunteers, which Dryden says are the backbone of non-profits, but finding enough people to keep everything running becoming challenging. 'As I sat the other night and wrote down my names of my volunteers, I have about 25, but if I'm struggling with 25, the minimum I would need to be reassured that I could keep going would be 20 because out of 20 you might get five that are available when needed,' she explained. Overall, she says the biggest gap is younger volunteers – people who are able to donate for longer days when needed or can help set up chairs and tables and perform other physically demanding roles. Fran Boudedridge has been volunteering with the legion for five years. 'I got involved with volunteering at the legion because I get to bake lots and lots of really good desserts, so we make carrot cakes and chocolate cakes and lemon cakes. That was the first reason for volunteering and after that it was just such a great crowd. We had such a good laugh, we had such a good time,' she said. Boudedridge isn't a legion member and doesn't have any veterans in her family, but she says it's important to keep the almost century-old building open. 'It's such a big part of the community,' she said. 'Some of the suppers, especially pre-COVID, we used to have suppers here and there'd be like a hundred people would come. It was such a big community event. It's a big part of the community, the vets really needed it, it would be sad to see it go. It really would.' The legion put a call out on social media for more volunteers and while a lot of people initially responded, Dryden says not everyone reached out to get added to the list. 'After living this since January, it seems to just be the way things are going and…we're just so sad to think this may need to happen, but it's one day at a time and we'll see where we can get to,' she said. Salisbury Mayor Rob Campbell says many people these days face a high cost of living, leaving them with less time for volunteer opportunities. He notes it's important to give where you can to keep places like the legion open. 'It would be a huge, significant loss. A couple of different things – obviously we have a veterans café, which is a group of veterans that come into our area – but we even service a broader area where people come into Salisbury that are veterans every Wednesday afternoon,' he said. He says the Vets Café serves dozens of veterans and offers a place for them to come together and find support and connection with people who can relate to them. He also points out it would be a huge loss for youth in the community. 'It becomes this visualization, learning area, where our youth can learn about the importance of the contributions that our veterans have given to society over many years whether it be the World Wars, the Korean War, Afghanistan, all those types of things,' he said. 'It's just been an area where our students have been able to go in and learn from the legion and our veterans.' Dryden says anyone who is interested in volunteering their time can reach out to her directly over Facebook or through the legion's social media page. She says the legion is here for all military divisions and the community as a whole and after nearly 91 years, she wants to see that tradition continue. 'I understand people are busy with lives and busy times, but volunteers are the backbones of non-profits,' she said. Salisbury Legion The Royal Canadian Legion Branch 31 in Salisbury, N.B., is at risk of closure. (Source: Alana Pickrell/CTV News Atlantic) For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTV News
28-05-2025
- General
- CTV News
Saskatchewan legion cancels events hosted by group that's discussing separation
The first legion branch in Canada, located on the 1800 block of Cornwall St., is shown on Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013, in Regina, Sask. THE CANADIAN PRESS/ROY ANTAL The Saskatchewan chapter of the Royal Canadian Legion says it has cancelled events hosted by a group discussing the province's separation from the rest of Canada. Chad Wagner, the legion's executive director in Saskatchewan, says he made the decision based on Unified Grassroots' public statements on separation. He says such calls don't align with the legion's founding principles and nor do they promote Canadian unity. Unified Grassroots has an online petition calling on Saskatchewan to negotiate new terms with Ottawa or look at separating from Canada. The group says the eight meetings it planned to host at legions across the province were cancelled. It says the town halls were meant to promote civic participation and that the legion should reconsider. -This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 28, 2025.
Winnipeg Free Press
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Saskatchewan legion cancels events hosted by group that's discussing separation
REGINA – The Saskatchewan chapter of the Royal Canadian Legion says it has cancelled events hosted by a group discussing the province's separation from the rest of Canada. Chad Wagner, the legion's executive director in Saskatchewan, says he made the decision based on Unified Grassroots' public statements on separation. He says such calls don't align with the legion's founding principles and nor do they promote Canadian unity. Unified Grassroots has an online petition calling on Saskatchewan to negotiate new terms with Ottawa or look at separating from Canada. The group says the eight meetings it planned to host at legions across the province were cancelled. It says the town halls were meant to promote civic participation and that the legion should reconsider. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 28, 2025.
