Barrie's Royal Canadian Legion branch, located on St. Vincent Street, will be celebrating nine decades of providing camraderie for veterans with a special gala on Saturday, May 25.
The Barrie legion turns 90 this year and a big party will mark the occasion with a dinner, entertainment and special guests.
Branch historian Steve Glover told BarrieToday that he hopes to pack the building with folks to honour the history of the local legion and all those who helped shape what the building has come to represent.
“Nowadays, the legion hosts many events for weddings, birthdays, dances, pool tournaments, and darts and card games, but the history of these buildings goes much deeper than that,” he said. “The legion was a place for those back from combat to come and get some peace of mind, or therapy, if you will.
"Someone who experienced major psychological trauma on the battlefield would be a mess at home and their spouse wouldn’t know how to help or how to talk to them," Glover added. "They would come down to their local legion and have a beer with someone who knew exactly what they were going through and it was kind of like a release for them where they could talk and laugh it out of their system.”
Glover has been involved with many aspects of the Barrie legion, but says he relishes his role as historian and believes that many people enjoy learning more about Canada’s military history, especially from a local point of view.
The Dr. W.C. (Bill) Little M.M. Branch 147 is named for military medal for bravery winner in the First World War.
“Bill was never president of the Barrie legion, but he was a popular doctor in town who was involved with assisting other veterans get the things they needed and it was mainly that which got his name on the building,” Glover said. “This building could have been named for a number of people, like our first president Tom Burton, or some of the many who either paid the ultimate sacrifice or came back to continue contributing to the community.
"It is such and interesting thing to see when people see a name and realize they live on the street named for that person, or recognize a name from the cenotaph and they get the back story for that person," he added.
News of legion branches closing throughout the country has began to pop up and while it is troublesome to Glover, he knows that the local facility has 800 members and with more volunteers they should be OK.
“In general, I am fearful for the future of the legion,” he said. “We have so many members who have passed on who were involved in World War 1 and 2 as well as the Korean War, and it appears that legions are not welcome places for our latest military veterans of Afghanistan and major peacekeeping affairs. These men and women who are in their 30s or 40s don't see the legion as their place; that needs to change, most definitely.
"It is a place for them, just like it was for those from earlier conflicts, and we support veterans through many campaigns and fundraisers," Glover added. "This branch has many members, but I would like to see more volunteers helping those who have been stretched so thin with work. I know I would love to show someone how to help with the history or booking entertainment here.”
The 90th anniversary celebration takes place Saturday, May 25 at 410 St. Vincent St., beginning at 5 p.m. with a meet and greet, followed by dinner at 6 p.m. Tickets are $35 and can be purchased at the legion bar.
Glover encourages everyone to come out, even if they’ve never been to a legion before, and enjoy the party.
“This really is a community celebration, honouring a 90-year-old local institution,” he said. “Everyone is welcome and who knows? Maybe you’ll be inspired to join and volunteer.”
