Steinbach Legion to host grand opening, modernizing for new members

The Steinbach Legion is hosting a grand opening of their new head office on Brandt Street on Friday and are welcoming the community to come and join in the celebrations.

“We want the public to come and look at our new digs and check out what we do for the community and have a little tour. And then, we’re going to have snacks, sandwiches, and goodies, and coffee, and some door prizes. And just some stuff to get people interested in where we are and what we do,” said legion president Bill Richards.

Members moved from their previous office at the Pat Porter Active Living Centre a few months ago because they didn’t have enough space. Prior to headquartering at Pat Porter, the legion was located on Lumber Avenue where it had a hall for weddings, socials, and other events. They sold that location in 2017 due to dwindling memberships..

In an effort to attract younger veterans and other people in the community, the legion is modernizing by having a virtual membership card, a website, a Facebook page, keeping their meetings short, reducing rituals, and having a no smoking atmosphere.

“So we’re looking—anyone can join the legion. There used to be some rules and restrictions about that, but that’s all changed…And there’s potential here for us to grow, actually, but it’s going to take some time,” said Richards, noting members receive discounts at retailers, travel companies, and insurance companies.

There are currently 53 members at the legion, 20 that are active in Steinbach. According to the national Royal Canadian Legion website, there are more than 270,000 members across the country in more than 1,350 branches. Richards said that while some local legion memberships are declining in number, nationally membership is strong particularly in the East and West Coasts and Alberta.

While veterans from the World Wars have died, Richards hopes veterans from the Afghanistan, Haiti, Namibia, and the Yugoslavia conflicts will join the legion.

“I know there’s a local group in the Southeast that meets quite regularly…And those veterans tend to associate with themselves, whether they’re an organized group or not is hard to hard to say. I actually don’t know if they are. But I do know they meet occasionally. We’re trying to figure out if there’s any way we can attract them.”

The mandate of the legion is to help veterans and their families. Richards said veterans are Canadian Armed Forces members, including peacekeepers, and RCMP officers. A retired RCMP officer himself, Richards has been a member for 22 years and said there are other police officers in the legion.

“So if there’s a veteran or family out there that is in need, they are more than welcome to call us, and we try and help them out, whether it’s through veterans’ affairs benefits or whether they need money for temporary funds for medication or rent.”

The legion does a lot of community work. It donated money to support the Joint Hospital Visiting Committee in Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario, which has volunteers visiting veterans in personal care homes. It donated to the Fort McMurray Wildfire Relief Fund, Bethesda Place to buy over-bed tables, Bethesda Regional Heath Centre for a new spirometer which tests a person’s lungs for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or asthma, and long-term care mattresses in Vita.

It’s biggest fundraiser is the Poppy Campaign, which starts at the end of October. Last year, saw the legion sell 35,000 poppies across the Southeast. It’s biggest event is the Remembrance Day ceremony at Pat Porter, which is attended by 400 people annually.

“It takes a lot of work, and we are the only legion in Southeast Manitoba right now,” said Richards.

The legion will host its grand opening on Sept. 26 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. at 13-90 Brandt Street. For those who are interested in joining the legion visit legion.ca and search for 04-190 for the Steinbach branch.