The community legion has long since been a gathering spot in towns across Canada for veterans and families to go celebrate, play cards, perform and converse. However, due to declining memberships and much higher costs to maintain, many are being forced to close their doors.
The Montgomery Legion (Branch 351) in Ottawa’s Centretown recently had to deal with a broken elevator, which will cost an estimated $100,000 dollars to repair, according to CTV News.
It also means that some of the legion’s oldest and most loyal members, with many now being in their eighties and nineties, won’t have access to the multi-storey facility.
The absence of an elevator makes private groups who would rent the legion less likely to do so as well.
Branch president Dennis Sirman said that after burning through all the legion’s savings, it still wasn’t enough to cover the cost of the repair, which prompted them to start a crowdfunding campaign.
So far, the branch has been able to cover its monthly costs, however the situation remains anything but stable.
“We had some momentum going and were actually several months in the black and then the elevator failed,” said Sirman.
Sadly, the financial struggles of the Montgomery legion are far from an uncommon story, as many legions throughout Canada face similar struggles.
The Donkin Legion (Branch 5) in Nova Scotia, has been a home for veterans to come since 1927, however a declining membership and the expense of maintaining such an old building has put the legion in a precarious situation.
“The veterans fought for us. We should keep this legion going because they fought for us, so we could be here and safe,” said Tanya Clements, second vice president of the Donkin Legion.
An Edmonton radio station managed to raise enough money through several meat draws to keep its Kingsway Legion (Branch 175) open and out of debt, but the monthly costs of its utility bills alone are around $16,000 per month.
“We have a problem and that’s going to become our next big bugbear, making sure that we have sufficient funds to pay those big bills,” said branch president, Robert Torrie. “It’s very stressful. It keeps the manager asking, ‘where are we going to find the money?’”
According to Torrie, the branch has had to get creative when it comes to new fundraising ideas to keep the revenue coming in but membership and volunteers are in decline in Edmonton as well.
“We have a lot of card carrying members and if it wasn’t for associate and affiliate members a lot of legions would be closed,” said Torrie.
“Unfortunately we just don’t have the veterans … those born in the 90s and on, they just don’t seem to be interested in joining the legion. They saw that as their grandfather’s drinking place, or grandmother’s.”
Every branch of the legion operates independently from the Royal Canadian Legion (RCL) and volunteers make up the majority of the help.
“The legion’s main purpose is to keep remembrance going and to assist any veteran in time of need, either financially or morally,” said Torrie, who does employ some paid staff at his branch.
A spokesperson with The Royal Canadian Legion said that despite the rising costs of operating and changing demographics in many communities, the organization overall has seen a 5% increase in membership over the past two years.
“The legion is seeing membership growth at every provincial command across the country,” said RCL communications manager Nujma Bond. “Branches are run primarily by volunteers and can face localized challenges, but their unique situations do not translate into a current problem across the country.”
The RCL has only seen four of its over 1,350 branches forced to close down in the last year and Bond said that several new branches have even opened.
In June 2020, Sirman’s old Ottawa branch shut its doors for good and he said he hopes that his current branch will remain open for years to come.
“Every time you lose a legion, you lose that centre point, or community point,” said Sirman. “It’s frustrating because sometimes you throw your hands up in disgust and say, ‘What can I do?’ Then you have a successful karaoke night or a celebration of life for a long-time member and it restores the energy that you have to keep moving forward.”
