There will be a 50th Anniversary celebration in Stittsville on July 27th to mark the number of years that Branch 618 of the Royal Canadian Legion Stittsville has been in existence. The Legion has given Stittsville 50 years of charitable service and is one of Stittsville’s community pillars. Fifty years is a milestone to be celebrated by all of Stittsville.
A bit of history on the building — at one time, the Legion building on Main Street had been home to the Loyal Orange Lodge (LOL) No. 489, built in 1930. The three storey, cement block building cost $10,500 to build and replaced the earlier Orange Lodges in the community that had burned down. As the Orange Hall, the building served as Stittsville’s community hall for years, hosting dances, parties, Saturday matinee movies for children and community gatherings. The building was also used to temporarily hold school classes prior to an addition of schoolrooms at the Stittsville Union Public School (now Frederick Banting Alternate School).
In 1969, the Stittsville Legion was founded, with their official charter being received on January 22, 1970. The Legion then set about to find a permanent location and purchased the LOL building for the price of $25,000 on September 30, 1970. There was a proviso included in the sales contract that allowed the Orange Lodge to remain as a lodger on the third floor to continue LOL activities as well as hold their Thursday evening meetings.
The Legion supports and holds numerous community events in their hall, many charitable fundraisers and have provided an open door to many who served in the Canadian military family. The organization continues to fund many local charities, youth sports and have regularly donated bursaries to college and university students from Stittsville. Their team of volunteers work tirelessly because they care for their community. Paramount to their operations, members follow with pride the Legion’s mandate of serving veterans, the community and local charitable organizations.
The Legion’s membership consists of current and former military personnel, Royal Canadian Air Army and Sea Cadets, Royal Canadian Mounted Police and provincial and municipal police members, direct relatives of members, affiliated members and members of the general public.
The branch is currently fundraising for themselves. The building they are currently in is getting tired and requires improvements that are extremely costly. In light of this, the Legion has decided to construct a new building to include a meeting hall and pub, along with a commemoration wall. The new build will have a patio next to Main Street sidewalk with offices on the ground floor.
If you have any connection to the Legion or it has impacted someone you know, a donation of $250 will let you have an engraved brick to recognize a member of the Canadian miliary, a business, a loved one or even yourself, which will be displayed at the new building’s front entrance. You can donate at the Legion directly or online at www.stittsvillelegion.com. If you have any questions, Judy Campbell, the President of Branch 618 will be pleased to help you out. You can contact Judy at: judy.campbell53@sympatico.ca.
Come out on Saturday, July 27 to help celebrate this monumental occasion with the Legion members. It all starts at 2:00 pm with an opening ceremony, children’s activities and live music in the evening. There will be a BBQ happening to help raise money for the building fund.
Too bad I received StittsvilleCentral the day AFTER the July 27th event.
I would like to see a silhouette of a nursing sister portrayed on the wall as well.
This is a very good e-newspaper. Thank you
Karen Prytula