The Tsawwassen branch of the Royal Canadian Legion is closing its doors.
Operating since the early 1990s, its final day will be Dec. 31.
President Gary Bain confirmed the decision was made to close Branch 289 during its annual meeting on the weekend, although another meeting will be held to formally notify the membership.
Bain said it all comes down to a lack of funds as the branch, which rents its venue in Century Square on 56th Street, has been struggling to keep afloat.
“We’d certainly like to keep it going but we’d need someone to throw us a lifeline,” he said.
Bain noted a dwindling membership and volunteer base have made things especially difficult.
“We had a lot of members just in the past couple of years who moved out of this community and live elsewhere. When the house prices went up, we easily lost 30 or 40 members. A lot of these people were 70 or 80 (years old) and they were sitting on a big chunk of money, so decided to sell. The demographic here is different now,” Bain said.
“We’re dependent on the membership and the funds have just floated away, and except for the bookkeeper and janitor, the employees are mainly volunteer. The bartenders, I have one that’s 83 years old and one that’s 81,” Bain added.
The Royal Canadian Legion was founded in 1926 to serve the needs of Canadian soldiers and their families. Facing mounting costs and a gradually dwindling membership and volunteer base across the country, the Legion in recent years has seen branches close their doors or declare bankruptcy. Most surviving branches now accept people with non-military backgrounds as members and casual walk-ins to help keep venues afloat.
In a 2012 interview, then Tsawwassen branch president Bob Wilkinson and manager Terry Nylander said their membership stood at around 215.
They noted that to keep the branch viable, they installed a stage and sound system to attract good musical lineups, as well as other activities, as a way to get people to visit, especially younger ones.
Over the years the branch has raised a great deal of money for community groups such as Delta Hospice, Deltassist, Delta Hospital Foundation and others.
It also had a wheelchair and scooter loan program. As well, the Tsawwassen branch started a popular annual car show and Christmas toy drive.
South Delta’s other Legion is Branch 61 in Ladner. That branch was chartered in 1928.
