With Remembrance Day just around the corner, Royal Canadian Legion Branch No. 43 in Pincher Creek has launched its annual Poppy Campaign. Members are currently distributing the symbolic red flowers in exchange for voluntary donations.

Legion members have placed poppy boxes in businesses across the community to raise funds that support local veterans and their families. The campaign started on the last Friday in October and runs until Nov. 11.

Volunteers also have tables set up at visible locations, with colourful poppies available to honour our nation’s veterans.

“The poppy is more than a symbol. It’s a reminder of those who served and a way for all of us to give something back,” says John Reid, co-chair of this year’s local campaign and a 33-year veteran of the British Army.

Funds stay in the community

Poppy Campaign funds are held in trust at the branch level, primarily to support veterans and their families within the community. Support can include food, heating costs, clothing, prescription medications, essential home repairs, medical equipment, research into mental and physical health needs, and much more.

The local Legion recently provided winter clothing for a veteran facing financial hardship, construction tools so another could start a new job, and specialized medical equipment for a veteran’s child.

According to Dick Burnham, branch service officer for the Pincher Creek Legion, funds are dispersed directly to assist veterans of the Canadian Armed Forces and RCMP, and their families.

“Money raised through the Poppy Campaign goes towards supporting people in need within the community,” says Reid. “We have a medical room in the basement with walkers and scooters, and if a veteran needs equipment, we’ll make sure they have what they need.”

The Pincher Creek Legion also provides bursaries for students who are descendants of veterans, PTSD research at the University of Alberta and advocacy programs that help veterans navigate benefits through Veterans Affairs Canada.

While poppy boxes remain the cornerstone of the annual fundraiser, the campaign also raises money through wreath sales to businesses, organizations and families, and charitable donations made directly to the branch.

Year-round remembrance

Introduced in 1921, following the Royal Canadian Legion’s adoption of the poppy as a symbol of remembrance, the Poppy Campaign has become a nationally recognized means of honouring those who serve. Poppies are distributed freely in communities nationwide, with donations supporting veterans and their families.

Burnham emphasizes that remembrance and expressing gratitude to servicemen and servicewomen shouldn’t be limited to a single day each year.

“Remembrance, to me, is year-round. It’s always something I think about,” he says. “We have to teach the younger people that we’re remembering the people who fought for us, who gave us the freedoms that we have today.”

Donations can be made at poppy boxes throughout the community, in-person at the Legion, or directly to the branch’s Poppy Fund via e-transfer to poppyfund43@outlook.com.

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