The Royal Canadian Legion Saskatchewan Command Commemorative History Booklet 278 A group of Sturgis area Veterans met in Sturgis village hall on January 15, 1946, to discuss the formation of a Branch of the Canadian Legion and to organize a Veterans’ Association, until such time that arrangements could be completed to apply for a Legion Charter. Plans to build a Legion hall were discussed and in February, 1946, a contract was awarded for taking out 25,000 feet of lumber. It was reported that the village of Sturgis was prepared to donate Lot 7, Block 3, Plan AA3984, next to the United Church, as a site for a Legion hall. Following correspondence with the Legion Provincial Command, a petition was sent to the Provincial Command requesting that the Veterans’Association be granted a Charter as a branch of the Canadian Legion, with the name of Sturgis Branch, Canadian Legion of the B.E.S.L. The petition was signed by the following Veterans: Norman Mattison, Tom Durham, Gordon Boen, Lloyd Brooks, Harold George, George Bartch, Clifford Sells, James Ness, Norma Morken, Mervin Durham, Fred Beatty, Alvar Johnson, David McBride, Jack Medlang, Lloyd Pollock, Kenneth Fraser, Gilbert Johnson, Chester Carlson, Albert Nightingale, Mahlon Pollock. On October 29th, 1946, Zone Commander H.L. Richardson and the Canora initiation team initiated the Charter members into the Canadian Legion. Dances were held and raffles organized in an effort to raise funds to build the proposed Legion hall. In the fall of 1946, the first Poppy Campaign was arranged and a Remembrance Day service was held on November 11, 1946. During the following years, membership in the Legion Branch fluctuated, due to many Veterans leaving the Sturgis area and others being kept busy establishing themselves in their post-war careers. In 1948, a trophy was purchased, to be presented by the Sturgis Legion Branch for annual competition in the Sturgis Curling Bonspiel. For many years, the Branch entered a curling team in the Annual Legion Bonspiel. The Branch also continued to hold occasional dances and raffles. In 1949, when it became apparent that for financial reasons that it would not be possible to build a Legion hall, the cement and part of the lumber on hand was sold and the proceeds from the sale, together with the remaining lumber, were donated to the fund for the Memorial Arena, which was being built in Sturgis at that time. In return for its donation, the Legion Branch was permitted to construct a Clubroom upstairs in the arena. After the Memorial arena burnt down in 1966, the Legion donated the proceeds from the insurance coverage it held on the Clubroom to the fund for the construction of a new arena. For some years after the fire, the Legion Branch held meetings in various locations but continued to support Legion and local events, to hold the Annual Poppy Campaign, and to conduct an annual canvass for the Salvation Army. With the assistance of their wives, the Legionnaires sponsored queen candidates for the Sturgis ice carnival for several years, with their candidates being crowned carnival queen on each occasion. In 197071, the Branch erected a Cenotaph on a site near the Sturgis arena and a dedication ceremony was held at the Cenotaph on June 2, 1971. In the fall of 1970, the town of Sturgis offered to sell the old town hall to the Sturgis Legion Branch for the sum of $1.00. The hall was in a very dilapidated condition and would require renovations running into thousands of dollars. After a long discussion, the Branch passed a motion to accept the town's offer and to purchase the hall. At that time, a very successful membership campaign was held, and in April 1971, a Ladies’Auxiliary was formed to assist the Veterans to raise the necessary funds for the extensive renovations. In the spring of 1971, renovations were started with sewer and water and two gas furnaces being installed in the hall and washrooms, a furnace room, cloakroom and a new kitchen were built. Renovations were made to the main hall, with the old stage being torn out to increase the size of the hall. On the completion of this work, a Grand Opening was held. In May 1972, the lot adjacent to the Legion hall was purchased from the Sturgis School Unit to provide a future site for a dining room to be built on to the main hall. At a meeting held on April 3, 1973, A.C. Palmer, a Legion member, presented information on “New Horizons," a federal government agency set up for aiding senior citizens to organize projects of mutual benefit and recreation. A motion was passed that A.C. Palmer be the one to convene a group of at least ten senior citizens to sign an application for formation of a “New Horizons” group; such group to be sponsored by the Sturgis Legion Branch. The seniors were given use of the Legion hall for a weekly gathering for fourteen months, until they were able to move into their own building. In the fall of 1973, the Branch started holding weekly bingos, and the bingos continued to be held until April 1992, when they were discontinued due to lack of help. In July 1973, the Branch, along with its Ladies Auxiliary, took over the operation of the hamburger stand at the Sturgis Sports Day and continued to operate the stand each Sports Day until 1978, which was the final year. Work started on building the new dining room in December 1975, and the work continued throughout the winter, with the shingling of the roof being completed during the summer of 1976. A decision was then made to complete the upstairs clubroom and to lay a floor of plywood as an underlay in the main hall and to then lay battleship linoleum over the plywood. In October 1982, a neon sign was purchased for the front of the Legion hall. The Branch purchased Lot 11, Block 2, Plan AL1412 in Sturgis (known as the Pete Thomas property) in August 1980, and in August 1983, transferred the lot over to the seniors R.E.A.D. Club, for the purpose of building a new Seniors’ Activity Centre, for the sum of one dollar. The Legion Branch also contributed $1,500 to the Seniors' Building Fund in 1983. Since receiving its charter in 1946, Sturgis Legion Branch has looked after the welfare of all Veterans and has supported and donated to Legion, provincial and local projects, too numerous to mention. It has sponsored a Pee Wee hockey team, a minor baseball team, and acted as co-sponsor, along with the Sturgis School Unit, of the Sturgis Army Cadets. The Legion was the first to start the process of getting senior housing for Sturgis, a project that was later taken over by the Town of Sturgis. Many Legion members have now passed on or moved to other areas, but in 1997, the Sturgis Legion Branch continues to operate its hall, run an Annual Poppy Campaign and to organize a Remembrance Day Service on November 11th, after which lunch is served by its Ladies’ Auxiliary. Following are the Presidents of the Branch since 1946: 1946, Harold George; 1946, Norman Mattison; 1947, Alan Bull; 1947, Norman Mattison; 1947-48, Harry Cassidy; 1949, Alvar Johnson; 1950-54, Chester Carlson; 1955-56, Lloyd Pollock; 1957-62, Stan Polkosnick; 1963-66, Fred McAlaster; 1967-70, Al Ritchie; 1971, Warren Holmberg; 1972-78, Sam Holmberg; 1979-80, Max Moss; 1981-86, Ben Lande; 1987, Warren Holmberg; 1987-2003, William Cherniawsky. Sturgis Branch 302 was disbanded on November 18, 2003. STURGIS BRANCH 302 ~ Closed
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