Aylmer Legion hosts full day of family activities to honour veterans, families and supporters

Greg Newing

 

The Aylmer Legion hosted a day of family activities to honour veterans, their families and legion supporters on August 13. The event included a corn roast and barbecue with games, balloons and face painting for children.  The afternoon activities were followed by an evening concert featuring “Arc of Fire”, a local band.
The event welcomed those of all ages including young parents with children who were visiting the Legion for the first time as well as long time members. One of the attendees, Jean Chadwick, had many family connections to the military, “My whole family are veterans. My great grandfather and my grandfather fought in the first and Second World War. My father was the drum major in the northern command and my husband was in the navy and served on the Bonaventure and the Majestic.”
Manon Fleury, Vice President of the Aylmer Legion and event organizer, explained that the fundraiser was to help raise awareness about the Legion’s activities and let residents know about its role in the community, “The reason behind all of this is to pass on the message about why we have a legion in Aylmer and what it is for. The Legion isn’t only something people come to once a year on November 11th, but is a place where you can come and have fun and connect with others. It is our 91st year in Aylmer and we are thanking the community by creating a little haven for everyone to come and enjoy the day.”
In addition to fundraisers of this kind, the Aylmer Legion has a broad range of social and community service activities and is always looking for people to bring new ideas. Fleury explained “You don’t have to be a [registered] member to participate. Everyone is welcome and we are always looking for people to come and to bring new ideas.”
Community volunteer opportunities
The Legion is located in the heart of the Old Aylmer sector on 59 rue Bancroft and is open on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 3pm. In addition to events like last Saturday’s fundraiser, there are a range of volunteer and community service opportunities open to residents.
One of the most successful initiatives has been a non-profit knitting project where volunteers get together, learn knitting and crocheting and make items such as blankets, scarves and mittens to donate to veterans, seniors and homeless people in the community as well as to children in crisis situations both in Aylmer and around the world. Among the group’s most recent activities has been a project where participants knitted over a thousand comfort dolls to help children in crisis in Ukraine as well as another project to knit and deliver blankets for seniors in nursing homes. This year’s knitting get togethers will start on Thursday September 8th and will be held every Thursday afternoon from 1pm to 3pm. In addition to the knitting project, the Legion is always looking for volunteers to help with cooking and building maintenance. To learn more about the knitting workshop and other volunteer opportunities at the Legion as well to get involved in their other activities contact Manon Fleury by sending a message to the Aylmer Legion’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/AylmerLegion33 call the Legion at: (819) 684-7063.