6 Friday, October 23, 2020 brooklintowncrier.com Brooklin Heritage Society Lest We Forget By Jennifer Hudgins The Royal Canadian Legion has a long history of proudly supporting veterans. When the First World War ended in 1918, veterans did not want the sacrifices of their comrades to be forgotten. It was also deemed important to provide returning veterans with encouragement and companionship, which led to the formation of the Dominion Veterans Alliance. Later, in 1925, the Canadian Legion of the British Empire Service League Charter was issued. As to the poppy worn by millions in Canada and other Commonwealth countries, France's Anna Guérin campaigned for the poppy in 1920 after reading the poem "In Flanders Fields" by Canada's Lt. Col. John McRae. A lecturer about French and British war heroes, the aptly named "poppy lady" took her campaign to Britain where the British Legion held its first Poppy Appeal. She also founded the organization "Fatherless children of France." Adopting the poppy That same year, the Great War Veterans' Association, the largest of several Canadian veterans groups, adopted the poppy as a symbol of remembrance, choosing November 11 to commemorate the anniversary of the Armistice. The other Commonwealth nations followed suit. The Canadian Legion, formed in 1925, continued this connection. The Royal Canadian Legion became "Royal" on December 19, 1960, when Queen Elizabeth II gave her consent. To meet the needs of returning veterans, Dr. James Moore, himself a veteran of the Battle of Hill 70 in France, worked with the Oshawa Legion Branch and other local veterans to establish the Brooklin Legion. They received the charter from the Legion's Provincial Executive at a gala celebration on November 4, 1929. However, the outcome for the Brooklin Legion wasn't as successful as hoped. A new home Brooklin barber Fred Philips bought the Brooklin House Hotel at 56 Baldwin Street in 1966 and renovated the building to be used as a Legion Hall. On June 6, 1970, the 26th Anniversary of D Day, the Brooklin Legion, branch 152, officially opened, giving the growing number of veterans from both World Wars and the Korean War a community that only the Royal Canadian Legion could offer. Today, it is no longer necessary to be a veteran of Canadian or Allied forces or a family member to join the Legion. Brooklin Branch 152 welcomes all newcomers as the Legion continues to improve the lives of veterans, those who serve in the Canadian Armed Forces, the RCMP, and their families. Brooklin thanks you for your service. Photos courtesy of Whitby Archives Our Brooklin Kids By Leanne Brown Different but still fun Will your children be going out for Halloween? If you're like me, it's kind of a wait-and- see situation. My child is 11 so, while I'm thinking she could trick or treat responsibly, I'm also watching the COVID-19 numbers before making a call on whether the door-to-door approach is safe. In the meantime, we are moving ahead with other Halloween traditions. Last weekend, we dug out the Halloween decorations. My daughter loves seeing the spooky ghouls and putting up the cemetery. We decided that even if there are no trick-or-treaters, we can still bring joy to those walking by. Multi-use costume Next, we worked on choosing a Halloween costume. She has a clear idea and I'm totally on board this year. You see, the costume can be converted to pajamas so even if Halloween neighbourhood adventures are suspended, she can still get use from it. It also turns out to be a good outfit for school. We're currently searching for the right mask to go with it. Ontario Public Health is recommending residents "be creative," and "create new traditions" only with those in their households. That's tough on kids for one of the biggest social events of the season. Gone is the Optimist Club Halloween dance and kids party. And even if you do decide to trick or treat, it just isn't as much fun without your friends. While the debate about whether or not Halloween should happen continues to be up for discussion, at the time of writing, no provincial public health office has banned Halloween. Rather, for most, it's game on, along with warnings and safety guidelines. Watching Parents are watching the infection rates knowing it really depends on what position we'll be in come October 31. Wait and see is what most parents in our area are doing. We're divided over whether or not we will send our kids into the streets as well as handing out candy. I did an unofficial survey of parents I know and a little over half hope to take their kids out. The other half plans to celebrate at home. In theory, Halloween could work if everyone wears masks and the kids only go with family rather than groups of friends. We'd need plenty of hand sanitizer and kids would not be able to eat candy until it's home, inspected and cleaned. One parent mentioned that their kids could collect candy but that she planned to throw it all away, replacing it with candy she'd bought. If Halloween does go ahead, parents need to think about the size of the groups their family will interact with while trick or treating. If an asymptomatic person interacts with, say, 40 houses on October 31, there could be a significant community outbreak shortly after. What's a parent to do? For us, we're sticking to low-risk activities, like carving a pumpkin on Zoom with friends so it's safe, but still has a "group feel" to it. As for costumes, there is the opportunity to show them off. I'll buy our daughter some candy and we'll have a monster movie marathon.