WHITBY FREE PRESS, WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 7, 1977, PAGE 5 Tom Edwards addresses Legion on, tis 5Oth anniversary Tributes were paid to the mnen who founded the Whitby b ranch of the Royal Canadian Legion at a dinner Thursday honoring the Legion's Sth anniversary in this town. Fred James, a past presi- dent and one of the four re- maining charter members of the Legion recalled the early history of the organization and how the Legion offered to look after veterans and their families during the lean years of the Depression. Legion members were the first citizens of the town to donate bloôd when blood donor clincis were established said. Mr. James, and their has always been a good relation- ship between the Legion and the Town of Whitby. 0f the 17 charter members who formed Branch 112 of the Royal Canadian Legion, in 1927, the four surviving members are: Fred James Harry James, Delbert John- ston, and Walter MacCari. Zone Commander and Whitby branch member Charlie Skelton told the members at the dinner that the times may change but the comradeship of the Legion does not. Councillor Tom Edwards,, the guest' speaker for the evening, paid tribute to the Legion's 50 yeas of service in the Town of Whtby, and praised Frank Steffler, sec- retary for many years,,for compiling a history of the Legion, which tells it s story from 1927 to 1977. "The founders left a sig- nificant and lasting legacy for us to follow," said Mr. Edwards. A veteran of the Second World War himself,Councillor Edwards noted how "the so- called weaker sex" played an important part in the war. -He also noted how in the North African campaign in which he served, there was often a tolerance and absence of hatred between the opposing sides, for "the men and machinery of- war seemed puny in face of the climate. The desert campaign was probably the last war when men faced each other honor- ably," he said. "Now people are slaughtered because they are in the way." Councillor Edwards re- called some of the highlights of the Whitby branches. acoto activity, such as the Centen- nial Drum Head Service in 1955, the success of the Whitby Dunlops and the sup- port offered by the Legion, and the County Town Carni- val participation by the Le- gion," he said. Councillor Edwards spoke of the Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth, "a comnrade iif arms," during the war. He read extracts from an editorial in the Irish Tines, which rather than turning a- gainst the monarch, praisedý her. "Whoever else let down the Irist people over the years,- it was no& Queen Elizabeth," the editorial stated. It went on to refer to the strong bond bptween the Queen and her people, and sated the mnonarchy's posi- tion had been strengthened and this is credited to the Queen herself, who has a "&quality of social excellence." Councillor Edwards said there was an object lesson in this tribute, and Cana'dians should look long and hard be- fore they consider disregard- ing the monarchy- In his closing remarks on the Sth anniversary of the Legion in Whitby, Councillor Edwards said: "Canada is a most unwarlike nation, but for the right cause, a nation of mighty warriors. It is their memory that we treasure." Pins awarded A number of menribers of Branch 112 of the Royal Canadian Legion received long-service pins at the Sth anniversary dinner Dec. 1.- Those receiving 35-year pins were George Willis and George Town. Those receiving 30-year pins were: Donald Bell, George Browning, Walter Henderson, Russel Johnson, William McGuire, Doug Rey- nolds, Don Weeks, Harry Simpson and Ernie W. Hough- land. Those receiving 25-year pins were: Homer Boake, Leonard Dale, 1-arry Inkpen, Ash Loyst, Robert Mansfield, Walter Porter,Charlie Richard George Wells, Bernard Green- ing, Ernie White, Jack Yates, Earl Ormiston and Hugh Ormiston - $1 to sa These happy Legion officiais gathered around a SOth anniversary birthday cake at Branch 112 of the Royal Canadian Legion Thursday as the Legion held a banquet to honor the event. From Ieft to right are: Zone Commander Charlie Skelton, President Henry Perry, Past President Bob Adams, Past President and Charter Member Fred James, and Past President John McIvor. Mr. Mclnvor was responsible for making the cake. Aliove these men is the original charter of the legion branch, dated Dec. 9, 1927. 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