Legion Giving Away Hall to Air Cadets
|
The Legion Hall in Provost.
It was built on the east side of town about 1963 and is flanked by two cannons on each side. Want to Subscribe to The Provost News? Click here.
|
|
The Provost Branch of the Royal Canadian Legion is giving away its building to the Macklin Air Cadet Squadron.
President of the local Legion branch Cal Fulmore said in an interview that they plan to turn the building over to the air cadets after the end of June.
There are only six or seven local Legion members left in Provost and “we can’t afford to run the place, so we offered it to them.” He added that many of the air cadet members are from Provost.
At least one other group had expressed an interest in purchasing the building and property but no deal was made with the Legion.
Fulmore said from his Hillcrest Lodge room that when a meeting of the Legion is held, it’s usually right in the lodge because that’s where four of the local remaining members live.
The Provost branch of the Royal Canadian Legion still operates but the Macklin branch shut down six or seven years ago.
|
Leader of the Macklin Air cadet squadron, Lorne Kohlman told The News that his reaction to the development “was unbelievable.”
“We have been looking for a place for cadets to do extra optional training and other things.”
He acknowledged that it is very expensive to rent a building for this type of training.
“This is a God-send . . . this is something that we really need.”
There are 41 cadets in the squadron with about half of the members from Alberta including members from as far west as Hughenden.
The hall in Provost will be used mainly for monthly training, including first aid, citizenship, dances, flight training and other regional meetings with cadets from other squadrons attending on occasion.
Regular weekly air cadets meetings will still be held in the Communiplex Macklin on Thursday nights from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m.
The cadets did not ask for the building. “It was out of the goodness of the Legion’s heart they gave it to us” points out Kohlman. “We were very surprised; it was something we were looking for, for a number of years. The space is unbelievable (with both upper and lower floors) and it’s great to have it.”
The local air cadets have never owned property before and plan to continue the tradition of providing free meeting space to Brownies, Cubs and Scouts. No changes are anticipated in the running of the Legion Hall and it will still be available for rental to the public as before.
Rest of story and photo in May 19 edition of The Provost News.
Want to Subscribe to The Provost News? Click here.
|
