Legion ladies converged on Rainy River last weekend

Ken Johnston

The Rainy River Legion Ladies Auxiliary played host to 72 members of auxiliaries over the weekend when the District 7 annual meeting was held in Rainy River.
The official meeting was held at the Rainy River Community Centre. Mayor Gordon Prost welcomed the delegates and praised the auxiliaries for their strong roles as volunteers in their respective communities. “During the flood (in Rainy River) last year the ladies worked many long hours providing food for those sandbagging.”
RR Legion President Gerry Marchuk called the auxiliaries, “The backbone of every legion.”
Auxiliaries from Fort Frances, Atikokan, Dryden, Kenora, Red Lake, Ear Falls, Sioux Lookout and Rainy River were present. Sending regrets were Ignace and Keewatin.
Each of the auxiliaries presented a report on their activities in 2002.
Atikokan had a membership of 139 with five of them being new to the club. They donated $19,000 directly to the Legion branch. They had total receipts of $62,771.85 for the year. Most of their money was raised through catering.
Dryden had 135 members. They donated $7,600 to their branch and another $2,400 to various other causes. They had $22,587.84 in receipts for the year. Catering was again their biggest fundraiser.
Ear Falls had 82 members. They donated $10,000 to the branch. They held bake sales, dances, sold homemade perogies/cabbage rolls and catered events. They had $23,236.26 in receipts.
Fort Frances had 162 members and donated $10,000 to their branch. Together with the branch they supported 32 athletes going to the Peace Gardens Legion Athletic Camp. They also donated $10,000 to various other causes including over $6,000 to Rainycrest Home for the Aged for furniture in the new Alzheimer wing. They did a lot of catering, held a spring tea, monthly dinners and made and sold perogies and cabbage rolls to raise money. Their total receipts were $47,241.05.
Keewtatin had 51 members. They held teas, catering, raffles and garage sales to raise money. Their total receipts were $12,020.91.
Kenora had 192 members, 94 of which are over the age of 70. Most of their money raised came from catering. They donated $5,869 to the branch and purchased $5,000 worth of new equipment for the kitchen at the branch. Their total receipts were $23,300.04.
Rainy River had 58 members and donated $5,000 to the branch. In addition to catering many events they also gave gifts to veterans on their birthdays, Christmas and Easter.
Red Lake had 30 members. They donated $6,000 to the branch and about $1,600 to other causes. They supported their local sea cadets and had $12,870 in total receipts.
Sioux Lookout had 119 members. They catered many events, sent cards and flowers to those members who were ill or suffered a family loss. They participated in the poppy sales campaign, a number of parades and helped with the branch’s sick and visiting committee activities. They helped 14 kids got to the Peace Gardens athletic camp. They had $63,199.08 in total receipts and donated $7,000 to their branch.
District Commander Alfreda Easton reported that in total all the auxiliaries brought in $405,625.99 in revenue. “You should all be very proud of your achievements.”
She urged the auxiliaries to get their efforts into their local newspapers. “Get the word out. Don’t keep it a secret. This is a great organization.”
She said membership stayed steady at 986 members across district 7 in 2002. “However, we need more new members as our membership is getting elderly. Maybe without an auxiliary there would not be a branch or perhaps it is the other way around.”
She thanked Rainy River for hosting the event.