The Royal Canadian Legion Saskatchewan Command LEST WE FORGET 277 The Sonningdale Branch 300 was started on April 23, 1946, with a meeting in the hall in Sonningdale. Moved by Geo. Ferguson, seconded by R. Mills, that a branch of the Canadian Legion B.E.S.L. at Sonningdale be formed. The motion was carried, and the following officers were elected: President, Geo Ferguson, nominated by S.A. Murdoff and seconded by N. Price; Vice-President, T. Bailey, nominated by Geo. Atkins and seconded by W. Ferguson; Secretary, J.A. Patterson, nominated by W. Ferguson and seconded by F. Barr; Treasurer, Geo. Atkins, nominated by G. McKee and seconded by F. Barr. The Executive Committee was elected as follows: Nelson Price was nominated by F. Barr and seconded by J. Patterson; R. Mills was nominated by Geo. Ferguson and seconded by -S. Murdoff; Arthur Ferguson was nominated by G. McKee and seconded by N. Price; S.A. Murdoff was nominated by W. Ferguson and seconded by Own Berglund; Owen Berglund was nominated by W. Ferguson and seconded by T. Bailey. It was moved by A. Ferguson and seconded by B. Donaldson that nominations close. The motion was carried. President Comrade Ferguson then took the chair. He called for nomination for Sergeant-at-Arms. Comrade Mikasky nominated S. Murdoff. The nomination was seconded by F. Casey, and Comrade Mikasky was elected. It was moved by S. Murdoff and seconded by W. Ferguson that annual fees be $3.00. The motion was carried. It was moved by A. Ferguson and seconded by S. Murdoff that the Branch be called Sonningdale. The motion was carried. It was moved by S. Murdoff and seconded by W. Ferguson that they meet on the first Monday of each month at 9:00 p.m. The motion was carried. It was moved by J. Patterson and seconded by F. Casey that Comrade Dobie be given a hearty vote of thanks for his work in the organizing of the Branch, and the motion was carried. The meeting was adjourned at 11.50 p.m. on the motion by S. Dnistransky and A. Ferguson, thus concluding the first meeting of the Sonningdale Legion Branch #300. The official date of the charter is July 30, 1946. The largest membership of the Branch was thirty-four members in 1947. In the early years, their main revenue came from hall rental and sponsoring dances in the hall. There was a weekly movie in the hall. They charged $5.00 rental for the Hall. They had a Poppy Fund from 1946 to the present time. The first Poppy Committee consisted of Arnold Agarand, Gerald Ferguson and Gordon Mills. The Branch sponsored a dance by the Farmers Fiddlers in 1949. Proceeds were $16.80. The year-end report for 1949 showed revenue of $504.00, expenses of $436.58, and a profit of $67.42. They sponsored the New Year’s Eve Dance in the hall for many years, until the price of orchestras became too high for the Branch to function. The Ladies’Auxiliary to the Branch functioned fromApril 20, 1948 to May 2001. They turned their money over to the Legion and many of the ladies joined the Legion. Records detailing activities of the Ladies’ Auxiliary to the Branch were lost in a house fire. There were fourteen members in 2006, and they are still working to keep the Legion going. The ladies redid the floors in the hall, had new tables made, and are still having their monthly meetings. There are very few ladies remaining in the Auxiliary, but they are planning to have a November 11th function to honor fallen comrades. Information supplied to Lois Syhut by Comrade Emil Agarand. SONNINGDALE BRANCH 300 The Caron Legion Branch received its charter, No. 2646, on August 20, 1946, with eighteen chartered members. The Ladies’ Auxiliary received its charter on July 13, 1950, with eleven chartered members. The Legion is located on Railway Street in the Hamlet of Caron, about seventeen miles west of Moose Jaw. The building was the former guardhouse at R.A.F. Station No. 33 E.F.T.S. Caron port during WWII, and was moved to its present location in 1946. The Branch holds a Remembrance Day Service at the R.A.F. plot every year. The plot is located within the Caron Municipal Cemetery, where ten R.A.F. pilots/students are buried. The Branch was presented with a commemoration certificate in January 1991, honouring Pte. William Milne, V.C. The Saskatchewan government named "Milne Channel" in his memory. He died at Vimy Ridge, France on April 9, 1917. Our last WWI Veteran, Roy Charles Killaly, passed on August 28, 1989. The Ladies’ Auxiliary closed in 1996, at which time, many of the Auxiliary members joined the Legion to help boost the membership, which now stands around sixty. CARON BRANCH 301
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