ORLEANS, Ont. - The Royal Canadian Legion is marking a major milestone: 100 years of advocating for veterans and their families.
The legion, Canada’s largest veteran support and community service organization, was officially incorporated by a special Act of Parliament in July 1926. The non-profit organization, which also has branches in the U.S. and Europe, has more than 300,000 members.
“It makes you feel (at) home, especially as a veteran,” said Berkley Lawrence the Dominion President of the Royal Canadian Legion.
The legion began with a clear mission 100 years ago that still stands today: to support veterans, advocate for their rights and to ensure the act of remembrance continues. That goal is reflected through programs like the legion’s Leave the Streets Behind initiative, which helps find housing for homeless veterans. The Royal Canadian Legion also runs specialized mental health support programs, a mental-health first-aid program and a buddy check coffee session to ensure no veteran or RCMP member feels alone.
The initiatives are in addition to the Remembrance Day ceremonies held across the country on Nov. 11, as well as various battle commemorations and the major fundraising poppy campaign.
Lawrence, who served for 33 years before becoming Dominion president, says he is confident the organization’s next 100 years will continue to prioritize the needs of military veterans and RCMP members.
“I think we just have to continue on what we’re doing,” Lawrence said. “That’s our main job: support the veterans and get the government to help them out.”
To mark the milestone, the Royal Canadian Legion issued limited-edition silver and gold coins, and worked with Canada Post to create a commemorative stamp that pays tribute to the organization’s continued role in Canadian life.
It also hosted special celebrations at the National War Memorial and Ottawa City Hall on Friday with dignitaries present including the Governor General Louise Arbour, Veterans Affairs Minister Jill McKnight and the head of the RCMP Mike Duheme.
“We’re hoping that events like today, celebrating our 100th and you know reciting what we have done over 100 years is going to help not only veterans but the Canadian public see what we do and that will encourage them to join the Legion,” Lawrence said.
The legion also celebrated its anniversary by waiving its yearly fee – which varies depending on the branch - for first time members joining in 2026. The legion says that helped to attract more than 100,000 new members across the country.
In Orleans, a suburb of Ottawa, the change is credited with helping grow Branch 632 to more than 1,100 members.
“We realize that the retention rate may not be that good, but we figure if we retain 5 per cent of that, it’s still good,” said Orleans Branch 632 President Mike Adams.
The goal of supporting younger members
Like many legions across the country, Adams’ branch has struggled with declining membership as its veteran population ages. While he has many members who have served in the RCMP, in Afghanistan and as part of UN peacekeeping missions, Adams says most of the people joining have never served.
“That is how we’re bringing in additional people,” he said. “We do want to attract those people because we want the organization to survive going forward and it’s all about remembrance.”
There are more than 1,300 local volunteer-run legion branches across Canada helping to raise funds, awareness and support for military members and others who need it. In many communities, especially in rural Canada, the legion is where celebrations of life, weddings, and birthday parties are marked. They have also become a hub for card games, karaoke nights, lunchtime chats, jam sessions and sports leagues.
Those efforts are all ways branches are trying to recruit new, younger members to compensate for aging veteran populations.
“The perception now, for some people, is still the old legion with a bunch of older people sitting around smoking and drinking,” Adams said. “Now that has changed drastically, because we are trying to attract younger people with new activities.”
Adams says his branch offers a wide variety of events seven days a week that appeal to a diverse demographic of people. They also rent out space in the building they own to help cover their costs.
A Royal Canadian Air Force veteran, Gord Atkinson has been a member of the legion on and off since the early 1970s when he was stationed in Cold Lake, Alta. with the Air Force.
“The Legion at one time you had to be a member, you had to sign in to get into the place,” he said. “But now it’s open to the public, which I believe is good.”
Atkinson said he first joined for a place to talk to other military members and have a beer. Now, decades later, the guitarist and singer is a regular at the Orleans branch’s Thursday jam session.
“It had a real meaning and it still does for some people,” he said about the legion’s importance in his father’s life. “It means there’s a place that I can go and relax.”
