Youth and Remembrance

The Royal Canadian Legion is committed to ensuring youth understand and continue the tradition of Remembrance.

 Promoting Remembrance is part of The Royal Canadian Legion’s mission and has been one of our principal objectives since our inception. The Legion inspires Canadians to remember those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country, and to honour those who served and continue to serve today. Remembrance is a year-long commitment and we endeavour to promote it through a number of programs, services and resources. 

 Grade 5 students at Queneesh Elementary visited Courtenay Legion to learn all about our fallen service personnel during long ago and recent wars.

Before their walk back to the classroom, they enjoyed a lunch of hotdogs and hot chocolate served at the Branch.

 The Royal Canadian Legion, in partnership with schools across the country and with The Legion National Foundation, promote remembrance and support youth education through the annual poster and literary contests.

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Remembrance Contests

This Teaching Guide was developed by the Legion to assist primary and secondary school teachers in fostering the Tradition of Remembrance among Canada’s youth. It’s important that today’s youth have a fundamental understanding of how Veterans defended the freedom and democracy that we enjoy today.

The guide includes:

• Notes on Canadian military history, the Legion and important Canadian symbols
• Remembrance themes in stories, songs and poems, and suggestions for school Remembrance activities
• Information about the Poppy campaign and how the money donated is used
• Information on our National Poster and Literary Contests

 The Royal Canadian Legion is committed to supporting Veterans and their families and offers financial assistance for post-secondary education to those in need.  

 As part of the Legion’s commitment to Veterans and their families, Legion Branches may grant bursaries through the Poppy Trust Fund to the children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren of Veterans who need financial assistance to pursue a post-secondary education. 

 As part of the Legion’s commitment to youth, many Branches award scholarships through their General Funds to recognize scholastic achievement and support youth in their community. Criteria for these funds are established by the Branch or Provincial Command. 

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 The Royal Canadian Legion's mission is to support Veterans, promote Remembrance and strengthen communities. As part of our commitment to our communities, the Legion is involved in developing youth leadership at the local and national level. Canada’s youth play a crucial role in the growth of our communities and in continuing the tradition of Remembrance. We encourage youth leadership through a number of ways. 

In the Legion’s early days, Legionnaires promoted youth sports as a way to help children whose fathers or mothers were serving abroad. From these informal beginnings, the Legion developed local, provincial and national youth athletics programs.

Today, Legion Branches support youth sports in their communities and help channel athletes into the Legion’s Provincial and National track and field programs.

  The Royal Canadian Legion, through the efforts of thousands of Legion volunteers, has been organizing and coordinating the National Youth Track and Field Championships for 44 years in support of Canadian youth and our communities. This national championship, funded by the Legion and generous support from our partners, gives young Canadians 17 and under a chance to compete against the best, develop confidence and better understand the diversity of other sports-minded youth across Canada. 

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