By Khang Nguyen

Royal Canadian Legion Convention wraps up in Prince Albert

Oct 19, 2015 | 5:22 PM

Members of the Royal Canadian Legion from all over the province spent some time in Prince Albert for their 48th Biennial Provincial Convention this weekend.

The convention kicked off on Saturday afternoon with a march down Central Avenue to the cenotaph located outside of City Hall.

The convention, which happens every two years, is time for the legion to elect new provincial executive positions, as well as review any changes that need to be done.

On Sunday and Monday, the members gathered at the Travelodge Inn to have those sessions.

“If we are contemplating a change in procedure, or a change of direction or facing new challenges, this is our opportunity to get together and determine as a team how we want to go forward,” Cherilyn Cooke, the executive director of the Saskatchewan Command of the Royal Canadian Legion said.

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Around 200 members took part in the convention this year. The legion boasts around 12,000 members in provincially and Cooke says it’s a number they want to see increase.

“Probably the biggest challenge facing the legion right now is membership,” said Cooke. “Our membership is declining which is truly unfortunate.”

Cooke said the decrease in numbers is due to the number of veterans passing away and fewer veterans joining.

“The average age of a veteran in Canada today is actually between 40 to 50 years old and people tend to think veterans are grey haired men, and that’s not true at all,” she said. “We want to serve the younger veterans and particularly the folks that are coming back from recent conflicts. We’re looking to make the legion more vibrant and more welcoming to younger members.”

Besides the new election of members, Cooke said the primary point in the convention will be how to increase and retain membership within the legion.

“We want to reiterate to the public that any Canadian citizen can become a member of the legion. You do not have to have military background. We ask only that you support our cause of supporting veterans and the call to remembrance.”

knguyen@panow.com

On Twitter: @khangvnguyen