The Castlegar Robson Royal Canadian Legion kicked off its annual poppy campaign by giving Castlegar Deputy Mayor Brian Bogle the first poppy of the year.
The local legion's campaign, coinciding with the national campaign, aims to raise awareness regarding the needs of veterans while remembering their sacrifices. All donations received during the campaign go towards supporting veterans.
Locally, poppies will be distributed Nov. 3-9 at various locations around Castlegar including Canadian Tire, Safeway, Kootenay Market, Steves No Frills, BCLC Liquor Store and Shoppers Drug Mart. Poppy boxes can also be found in 65 different businesses throughout the area.
In addition to the traditional poppy pins, poppy stickers are available for children.
The Royal Canadian Legion has also introduced some online methods to support veterans. Donations can be made at legion.ca/donations and there is a wide selection of poppy-themed products available at poppystore.ca.
New this year is a collaboration with Amazon. The Legion is offering lapel poppies and other items in an amazon.ca storefront.
The Legion also has wreaths on sale in three sizes: small $35, regular $55, large $80. These can be purchased at the Legion Branch (248 Columbia Ave.) If you purchase a wreath, it will be displayed at the Remembrance Day Service at the Cenotaph Memorial Cross. In addition, your name/business name will be published in the local paper as a thank you to all those who supported the Remembrance Day campaign. You can opt out of publication if you wish to stay anonymous.
Remembrance Day Ceremony
Castlegar's Remembrance Day Parade will leave the junction of Columbia Avenue and 3rd Street at 10:30 a.m. on Nov. 11.
The service at Kinsmen Park will begin at 10:50 a.m. with the two minutes of silence beginning at 11 a.m. This will be followed by the laying of the wreaths, speeches and music from the Twin Rivers Community Choir and the Castelgar Community Children's Choir.
After the service, everyone is invited to the Legion Hall for refreshments, membership is not required.
