The Ladies’ Auxiliary of the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 29 is hosting its annual Remembrance Day Tea.
The event will be held November 3 at the Fort Frances Legion, from 2-4 p.m. and will feature pictures of instrumental or veteran women from the Rainy River District in the Canadian military and war effort.
Admission is $6 for adults, and $3 for children under seven.
Tea is covered with the ticket price, with food available at an additional cost. Prizes will be available in a “pick-a-poppy” style and a penny table. Money raised is used for various fundraising efforts the group is involved with throughout the year, according to Emily Watson, President of the Ladies Auxiliary.
“The pictures are of women from the Rainy River District that either served in the war or were instrumental in supporting the war effort,” says Watson. “We have veterans that have served much more recently than [WWI and WWII.]”
While tea, supplied courtesy of Smashing Tea, is complimentary, there will be several ways to support the Legion at the event. Homemade food items will be available for sale, including meat pies, perogies and cabbage rolls. Meat pies come in small and medium sizes, for $9 and $12 respectively. Perogies are $6 per baker’s dozen, and cabbage rolls are $8 for a dozen. There will also be “lazy” cabbage rolls for $6 per portion.
Surprise bags in a “pick-a-poppy” style are available with ticket purchase.
According to Watson, prizes, which have been donated by local businesses, are placed into surprise bags.
“You purchase tickets and choose a bag and whatever is in there, then that’s your prize.”
The penny table is also made up of donations.
“In some cases, we make up [the] baskets, or people donate,” says Watson, “We might have a basket that is for entertainment. So, it might have a movie in it, or it might have popcorn in it.”
There are multiple baskets to bid on, which appeal to a wide range of interests, including gardening baskets and pet baskets, says Watson, “People purchase a sheet of tickets, and each prize bag has a number. The person who has their numbers chosen is the winner of that particular basket or item.”
The money raised from the event will go back to the community.
“We support youth groups and our hospitals,” says Watson, “We can be relied on for the financial support that we give to the community.”
“The money from the 50/50 draw is used to sponsor the bursaries that we give out to high school students.” says Watson, adding, “For 2023, our group donated over $25,000.”
