About Us
The Royal Canadian Legion is a unique service organization that emphasizes responsibility and duty over members’ benefits. Any Canadian citizen or Commonwealth subject of federal voting age may apply. Eighty percent of the annual $45 membership dues are remitted to national headquarters, so dues do not keep a branch alive: the people do. Every branch needs active members who share the common goals of supporting Veterans and promoting Remembrance, and who have accepted a duty of community service.
Every Remembrance Day, large crowds turn out to commemorate our Veterans’ sacrifices and, following the cenotaph service, many people join Veterans at their respective Legion homes. Remembrance Day services and related activities may be the only exposure that many have to the Legion.
The purposes of the annual Poppy Campaign in November are to promote Remembrance and to support Veterans and their dependants by both direct and indirect means. Direct support, for example, includes wheelchairs and emergency financial assistance. In Charlottetown, indirect support includes grants to Meals on Wheels; Pat & the Elephant; the Queen Elizabeth Hospital; Camp Gencheff; Navy League & Sea Cadets; as well as needs-based, post-secondary education bursaries (about $10000 annually) to local children & grandchildren of Veterans. It is important to note that all Poppy donations are held in a trust fund, and that disbursements must adhere to strict, nationally approved, governing regulations. In the case of the Charlottetown Legion, disbursements average about $25,000 annually, with the vast majority of funds being allocated for purposes that benefit the whole Island community in some way. No Poppy proceeds are ever spent on the Legion itself.
Although there is a dedicated focus on Remembrance activities each November, the Charlottetown Branch, representing 400 of the total 370,000 Legion members, like all other 1500 Royal Canadian Legion branches (mostly in Canada, but also located in Europe, UK, USA), is active year-round with Remembrance projects, Veterans’ assistance, tribute (memorial) funeral home services, visitations, cadets, charities, community support, social activities, and general fund raising.
Legions face the same challenges as any other organization trying to stay afloat: revenues must exceed expenses. Charlottetown Legion revenues come from bar operations, bingo, and the Chase the Ace lottery. As with other not-for-profit organizations, the Legion also receives occasional government infrastructure funds and partial property tax rebates. Legion expenses include building maintenance, heat, light, payroll, property taxes, etc.
As well as being a great social gathering, bingo continues to be a vital component of Legion revenue. Bingo is held every Sunday and Monday evening at 7PM year-round. The Charlottetown Legion is looking for ways to improve the experience for those who attend bingo.
The survival of the Legion, however, depends on more than just balance sheets and profit & loss statements: it depends on people. The original foundation of the Legion was as a Veterans-only organization. It has evolved, however, and now welcomes into its ranks virtually anyone who subscribes to its mission statement. Even the definition of a Veteran has evolved, and the term now embraces any member of the regular and reserve force who has attained basic occupational qualification and has been honourably released.
The Charlottetown Legion uses its website, www.CharlottetownLegion.ca, as one of its primary communication tools. It includes numerous photos of past events, and there are many links to issues of interest to Veterans, as well as for other community activities, with a calendar of events maintained one year in advance. The website is not just for Veterans or Legion members – it is for everyone. Those who would like to receive occasional, important announcements may register an email address (which will never be used for any other purpose).
Visit our website frequently, and also drop into the Legion at 99 Pownal Street. Everyone is welcome.
Our Vision
is to be the most highly respected Canadian volunteer service organization, dedicated to serving Veterans, including serving military and RCMP members, and their families, to providing effective national leadership on Remembrance, and to selflessly serve our communities and our country.
Our Core Values
Service - We provide dedicated support and compassionate assistance.
Integrity - We behave ethically and in a manner that inspires trust, mutual understanding, and confidence.
Respect - We are supportive, inclusive, courteous, and fair to all, honouring the dignity and worth of every person.
Loyalty - We are steadfast in our patriotic allegiance to the Sovereign, to our country, to the Royal Canadian Legion, and to our Comrades.
Teamwork - We cooperate and work together selflessly, in Comradeship, to achieve our shared Mission.
Our Mission
is to serve Veterans, which includes currently serving military and RCMP members, and their families, to promote Remembrance, and to serve our communities and our country.
The Act of Remembrance
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old; Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning, We will remember them.
The Act of Remembrance is from the fourth verse of the poem, "For The Fallen," written by Laurence Binyon in 1914 about the outbreak of the first world war. It has been carried forward through the years as a solemn pledge to remember Veterans.
Copyright Notice
Some material is protected by copyright and registered trademark of the Royal Canadian Legion, and its use here is with permission of Dominion Command (www.Legion.ca). The Charlottetown Legion gives permission to any RCL Branch to reproduce or utilize other content from our website to support Legion interests. Other organizations are invited to link to our website landing page at www.CharlottetownLegion.ca, but are requested not to link directly to internal pages as their url may change without notice.