Legion’s Ladies Auxiliary unveil special benches on the Hill
After 100 years, and waiting a few extra months, the Ladies Auxiliary of the local Royal Canadian Legion Branch, finally have a bronze plaque with their name on it.
Executive members of the service club attended Roberton Park on Thursday for a grand unveiling of new park benches on the Southeast Hill playground that they funded as a centennial project last year.
It’s also the first time in memory for many members that they’ve been denoted on a permanent placard despite countless projects over the years.
“We said that we’ve got to do something for the Ladies Auxiliary,” said president Barb Lemna, who said sprucing up the park named for Pte. James Peter Robertson, V.C. — whose name adorns the No. 17 legion branch — was a fitting endeavour.
“They needed benches and we needed a project,” she said.
The project is an expansion on the city park’s department memorial bench program.
In this case, stylized metal benches featuring a military theme and poppies cover benches at the park off Cambridge Street.
The cost was $16,000 to the Ladies Auxiliary with Purist Welding producing the works and donating labour to the project.
The benches were installed last winter, but a planned spring-time dedication was postponed until this week.