No party, no problem
Legion finds way to mark veteran’s birthday milestone
Alcide LeBlanc sat on the inside of the window, smiling and waving to those outside.
They waved back and held signs wishing him a happy birthday — and not just any birthday, but a happy 100th birthday.
Under normal circumstances there would have been a gathering at the Wedgeport Legion Branch 155 in Yarmouth County to help mark this special milestone.
There would have been handshakes, hugs, certificates and cake.
But these days “normal circumstances” don’t exist.
People are self-isolating, staying home and social distancing to flatten the spread of COVID-19. The Veterans Place long-term care facility LeBlanc lives in is closed to visitors to protect the seniors and staff.
A birthday party that had been planned was cancelled. It will be held at a later date.
Still, you only turn 100 once — that is, for those among us who live that long.
Members of the Wedgeport Legion didn’t want to see this day pass without some acknowledge to LeBlanc that his special day mattered.
And so a few Legion members and friends, along with LeBlanc’s daughter, gathered outside of Veterans Place where they sang Happy Birthday to him in English and French. Legionnaire Rita Doucette, whose mother was a Second World War war bride from Belgium, also sang Happy Birthday in Flemish Dutch while waving the Belgium flag. Because LeBlanc is hard of hearing, telephones were also used to share the songs.
Those who gathered outside stayed for just a few minutes and practised social distancing, standing apart from one another. No one who was feeling ill attended, nor did anyone who is under mandatory self-isolation.
They stayed under the number of people that the province had declared at that point for gatherings. This was the day before the province declared a state of emergency.
“We couldn’t have it at the Legion so this was the only way we could do it,” said Legion member and friend Bev Boudreau.
“There are always people who know how to improvise,” added Corrine MacKenzie, a legionnaire and friend. “He waited 100 years to have a birthday party and this is it.”
ABOUT ALCIDE LEBLANC
During the Second World War, Alcide LeBlanc spent 11 months in combat. He was a canon gunner in the 4th Field Regiment of the
2th Division in the Canadian Army. He was a batman to a captain who decided where canons should be aimed against the enemy. As the driver of the captain’s jeep, LeBlanc would get them as close to the enemy lines as he could.
LeBlanc landed in Normandy, France, with the Canadian Army’s Fourth Field Regiment Second Division with their 25 pounder guns in July 1944, where an assignment was to bury dead Canadian soldiers in shallow graves. He fought the retreating German Army all the way to Berlin until Victory in Europe Day on May 8, 1945. He also served three months as a peacekeeper in Germany, leaving there in August 1945.
After coming back to Nova Scotia, for 47 years LeBlanc ran hotels, with help from his wife Agnes, that included the Wedgeport Inn, The Anchor Inn in Meteghan and another Ferry Inn Motel in Yarmouth.
He and four other veterans also recruited other veterans and as a result the Wedgeport Legion branch was founded in 1961.
In 2014, LeBlanc was among those from the Wedgeport Legion to be awarded the rank of Knight of the French National Order of the Legion of Honour in recognition of their involvement in the liberation of France during the Second World War. He is one of nine surviving Second World War veterans who are members of the Wedgeport Legion. He is the sole surviving founding member.
Wedgeport Legion president Clinton Saulnier said, although not as originally planned, he was glad they were still able to celebrate LeBlanc’s 100th birthday in a very small way.
“We just wanted to show him respect,” Saulnier said. “No one can visit him. We just thought, on this special day, to do something for him.”
Asked what the best thing about Alcide LeBlanc is, Saulnier said it’s his knowledge.
“Unbelievable knowledge for 100 years old and how coherent he is and how smart he still is,” Saulnier said.
Carol Wood, LeBlanc’s daughter, was appreciative of those who wanted to recognize her dad on his special day. She said they purposely planned for it to be a small number of people due to COVID-19 situation. Because of the visitor restrictions in place, even Wood could only visit with her dad at the window and by telephone on his 100th birthday.
“I thought it was wonderful that they thought of him so much to do this,” she said. “I truly appreciate it and I know he did.”