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i www.durhamregion.com THE CANADIAN STATESMAN, NOVEMBER 6,2002 PAGE 9 Remembrance Monda», Nov. 11 Veterans find support in Clarington towns Poppy sales brisk BY JANE MCDONALD Staff Writer- CLARINGTON - Jim Connell is one busy man these days. He's also quite happy to be run off his feet. With Remembrance Day less than one week away, the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 178 president is busy planning four ceremonies while keeping his canvassers canvassers supplied with thousands of poppies. poppies. "All the Legions have black (centres) (centres) poppies this year," he explains. "The ones with green centres were left over from last year. We sent our green ones out to all the schools as was suggested suggested by Dominion command in Ottawa." Ottawa." Regardless of the colour of the crimson crimson red symbol's middle, the little velvet velvet flowers are blooming throughout Branch I78's coverage area. From the Townline in Oshawa, east to Bow- manville, Newtonville and Newcastle, the popular Legion reaches north to include include Orono and boasts 1,000 members. members. ■ There are only about 200 veterans from the Second World War and Korea left as part of the branch's membership, their ages now averaging 80 and 70, re- Veterans minister visits Wilmot Creek spectivcly. "Most still go out to canvass," says a proud Mr. Connell, who comes from a .military family. He served in the Canadian Canadian Forces' militia, his father and uncles uncles during the Second World War and both grandfathers in the First World War. "We'll go through 50,000 poppies for this year," says Mr. Connell, not including including those sent to schools. "We just put in an order for another 5,000 to 10,000 because this community is very supportive of us." Branch 178 has also been busy organizing organizing the 100 wreaths that will be put at the four cenotaphs. "The wreaths will number up around 60 to 70 just for Bowmanville," he says. "With Newtonville, Newtonville, Orono and Newcastle, there will be a total of 100 for all four cenotaphs." cenotaphs." The basic purpose of poppy funds is to provide immediate assistance to ex- servicemen and women in need. This may include food, shelter or medical attention attention for them or their families. Bursaries Bursaries are also granted to children and grandchildren of ex-service personnel. "The money goes to veterans and their dependants and to those in Sunny- brook (the Toronto medical centre that traditionally cares for veterans)," says Mr. Connell. "We purchase wheel chairs, walkers, and raised toilet seats and loan them out for as long as they need them." Any ex-serviceman or woman or his or her dependant is eligible to apply for Financial aid from the poppy fund. They do not have to be Legion members. Branch 178 is one of 1,720 Canadian Legion branches. Mr. Connell says its success in helping veterans is due to the community. "We always thank the community for the support it gives. I'm originally from Toronto but have lived here for 23 years and it's true what they say about small towns being more generous. It's like a family." Take Two Minutes To Be Part Of The Wave Of CLARINGTON - Veterans Affairs Minister Dr. Rey Pagtakhan will cele- r brate part of Remembrance Week at : Wilmot Creek Saturday, Nov. 9 by un- || veiling a memorial, f "It's a pleasure for me to-be in h Durham for a portion of Veterans' r; Week to honour the men and women fr of Durham Region who made the ji! supreme sacrifice for our country," a i press release from Durham MP Alex i i: i Shepherd's office quoted the minister as saying. Dr. Pagtakhan will be joined by local residents of the senior citizens' enclave to dedicate a veterans' memorial memorial scroll to those past and present residents who served in the Second World War and Korea. The unveiling will take place at 3 p.m. in the Wheelhouse Auditorium, Wheelhouse Drive. 1 l; ! f- t; v 1/ WALTER PASSARELLA/ Statesman photo Promoting the poppy BOWMANVILLE - Legion members stopped by the Clarington Municipal Centre recently to help promote poppy sales for Rc- Î membrancc Day on Nov. 11. Taking time out from sales were * (foreground, from left), Fred Brown (past president) and John 1 Greenfield (poppy co-chairman). Holding the banner are, from ; left, Lyne Puddister (poppy chairman), councillors Charlie Ï Trimm and Jane Rowe, Mayor John Mutton, Nyhl Sheeham (poppy co-chair) and councillor Don MacArthur. T here are 525,600 minutes in a standard year. The Royal Canadian Legion is asking you to take two minutes of that time to share with us as we remember our war dead at 11 a.m. local time on 11 November. Help us create a "Wave of Silence" from coast to coast through your participation. It's not much to ask in return for, what we have as Canadians. But it will mean the world to those who survived the wars of the past century, and to those still in our military forces today. It will show them that their service counts and that they will not be forgotten as we speed our way through the 21 st century. The Royal Canadian Legion A force for remembrance Lest we forget. For information on this and other programs see our weh site at www. legion, ca or call a branch near you. I ! i i * i ; i i i i t i | ; / t f ? > I I i i 1 I I ! I 1 • i Let us pause and remember those who gave their lives for our freedom. Constituency Office 75 King Street East Bowmanville, Ontario L1C1N4 O'Toole Telephone (905) 697-1501 Toll Free 1-800-661-2433 o-moll|ohn. oloolo@onlln.oln.org MPP for Durham - Ontario - l i 1 » t 1 ( l t ; j / I i t « t i i i l I ) t i . .at the going down of the sun and in the morning we will remember them." PRESTON MOVING & STORAGE LTD. 420 Bnsollno lid. W,, Box 100 Oownmnvillo, Ont. UC 3K9 (005)023-443:1 OJJ B 1 800 O-Canada (1 800 622-6232) TTY/TDD: 1 800 465-7735 canada. gc.ca D Service Canada Access Centres Canada • find out about getting a job? search for health information on-line? • iearn about starting a business? find information about climate change? The Government of Canada's Web site has information about these subjects and more. It's there for you. canada.gc.ca Where can I-..