September and October have always been a busy time for the Regimental family and this year wasn’t any different. September was all about adjusting from summer schedules and planning for coming events while October was all about carrying them out. This didn’t always work out.
The Children’s Halloween Party had to be cancelled this year as the traditional site, the Brampton Armoury was not available on the weekend closest to Halloween. Other dates would have had their own problems, so reluctantly, it was shut down. We hope to have it back, bigger and better, next year.
The Col Frank Ching Golf Tournament
You couldn’t have asked for a better day for a golf tournament.
Labour Day started off a bit cool with a chance of rain and then turned into a beautiful day of sun and light breezes which allowed all the players to enjoy their round at Acton Golf Club.
Sherrard Kuzz LLP, one of Canada’s leading labour and employment law firms sponsored the tournament this year. Managing partner Michael Sherrard, a member of the Regimental Senate, received the designation of Kings’ Counsel in 2023 for his many services to the legal profession.
Over 80 golfers signed up, with many familiar faces returning and a good number of new faces coming out for the first time. Among the new faces were Junior Ranks from the Regiment, golfers’ family members and friends. All this led, once again, to demonstrations of a wide range of golfing styles, ability and fashion.
A new prize was added with a “Closest to the Keg” competition. Some golfers were disappointed to learn that the winner didn’t get to keep the keg, which was actually empty.
Practise paid off, with Hon Col Gary Loves’ team taking home the prize for top foursome.
Cpl Denisi and her team of first-time players took home the prize for the most honest foursome. You can see it in the Junior Ranks Mess in Brampton.
The Association raised over $4,000 on the day. This is a bit less than in previous years and was mostly due to increased prices at the golf club for the round and dinner and to reduced raffle ticket sales. However, this is still a significant amount and will help the Association conduct events in the new year.
You can help support the Tournament in 2025 by organising a foursome, donating a prize for the raffle or by volunteering to help organise and conduct the day.
The Tournament is a great way to meet people and have some fun. We hope to see you there next year.
The Tristan Kettles Cup Softball Tournament
The tournament is an annual fundraising effort of the Peel Police Service. It is named in memory of Constable Tristan Kettles, who died in a car crash in in 2017, just before his 26th birthday. Constable Kettles had been a piper with the Regimental Pipes and Drums.
Former Association President Andrew Harris has taken the lead every year to put together a team to represent the Association in the Tournament. Despite the handicap of the event being held mid week, he has managed to come up with a team every year.
This years’ team saw serving members of the Regiment, the Pipes and Drums and the Association come together to take part. The players had a good time, despite their lack of success in the overall results.
Thank you to all who came out.
The Tournament will be held in mid September next year, so if you are interested in playing or just want to come out and watch, contact Andrew Harris for more details next summer.
The Regimental Museum
It has been a very busy time at the Museum. Awareness of the Museum’s existence is growing. Brampton Toastmasters, the Army Cadet League of Canada Ontario Branch, the Brampton Santa Claus parade committee, 132 Spitfire Squadron Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps and the Regimental Trust are among the groups that have asked to use the meeting rooms in the Museum, and we are looking forward receiving more requests for room use the future.
The Museum is now at just under 1100 visitors and another 150 to 200 people coming in for meetings since opening day in May and the hope is that this will continue. Foot traffic in the area seems to be down a bit from the summer months, which could be a worry and will be a spur to creating an effective marketing plan. The Museum is starting to receive group visits and requests for group visits. Sgt Darragh Connaughton brought his family from Ireland for a visit while they were in Canada for a wedding visit. The City of Brampton Tourism Office staff have come by and are trying to find ways to work the Museum into their productions. The Great War Flying Museum staff, history classes from Cardinal Leger Catholic Secondary School and 2990 Lorne Scots Cadet Corps from Milton are scheduled to visit in the near future. If you know of a group that is interested in visiting, contact us at museum@lornescots.ca. Admission is free and times can be worked out to suit.
October the 5th was Doors Open Brampton 2024. The theme was repurposed buildings, so the Museum was a natural fit. We were also used as the centrepiece for promotional material put out by the City, including a short video clip.
All of this led to over 200 visitors coming in to see the Museum. They saw a display by Mr. David Brunelle and Mr. Ron Phillips about being re-enactors focussing on the War of 1812, a display about the history of the building and downtown put on by the Brampton Library and the Museum displays. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. The Library presenter said that it seemed like everyone who came in, stopped at her display. Many had a memory of the building when it was in use as the Library and most had at least one question about the building or downtown. From the Museum, visitors could tour the regimental headquarters in the Old Firehall and the Armoury, so it was a definite win for creating awareness of the Regiment and the Regimental Family.
Major Matt Proulx gave a very interesting presentation on his operational tour in Europe as the with Security Assistance Group – Ukraine. His principal task was the co-ordination of training between the Ukrainians and the multiple countries that are providing support to them. It was a very interesting presentation with a lot of good questions at the end. There was a good deal of interest in having him give the presentation again to a wider audience. So more to follow on this.
The Museum has also begun to take part in activities in the community. On 12 oct, we provided a lobby display for the ”Thank You for Your Service” concert by the Brampton Concert Band and the Pipes and Drums at the Rose Theatre. It got a number of questions and helped raise awareness of the Museum.
Now that school is back in, the Museum has seen an increase in the number of volunteers. High school students have to complete 40 hours of volunteer service per school year, and this has brought five students from Cardinal Leger Catholic Secondary School into the fold. The school is just a few minutes walk from the Museum and the extended hours on Wed means they can come over after school and get several hours of credit without a major disruption to their day.
The Museum will be starting a regular Volunteer night in Nov. Starting on the 13th and continuing weekly, between 7:00 and 9:00 pm, people interested in helping at the Museum can come in and help with the many vital tasks that are needed to help keep the museum moving forward.
These will include:
Sorting, recording and packaging the collection materials,
Accessioning items, (bringing them into the collection)
Photographing items,
Sorting, recording and storing archival materials,
Data entry and updating,
Social media,
Researching requests for information, and
Reorganisation of the photograph collection ( sorting, recording and storage)
The priority now is archival sorting and organising, collection sorting and recording and accessioning of items.
No experience is needed, although it would be helpful, and you don’t have to commit to a specific number of nights. You will be shown how to do the various tasks, and your help will be gratefully received. Just show up at the Museum on Wed night and a job will be found for you.
The Museum will be open on Monday 11 Nov following the Brampton Remembrance day service at City Hall. Drop in to get an idea of the service of the people of Peel, Dufferin and Halton in the service of Canada from the 1790’s to the present day.
Mental Health and Peer Support Training
Maj Paul Hale has organised a series of workshops on this subject. They are free and will be of benefit to those who will be deploying operationally in 2025, their families, their peers and friends. It will be especially helpful for those members of the Regiment who have taken the Sentinel program training.
The workshops will be conducted at the Regimental Museum.
There are still a number of spaces available for the workshops. Check the dates on the poster and contact Maj Hale before 04 Nov to sign up for any or all of the workshops.
From the Fusiliers
As noted in the last Newsletter, the 1st Battalion of the Fusiliers are busy working up to becoming the first Boxer equipped battalion in the British Army. In addition, they are keeping up a full slate of other activities.
Among these is sports. A new one has been added to the list. American football.
This year five members of the 1st Battalion were selected to be part of the British Army team, “The Jackals, which went on to win the Inter-services Championship, defeating the RAF 18 to 6 and the Royal Navy 35 to 6.
Congratulations to all.
Help Wanted
The Regimental Association is looking for some help. Due to increasing family and work pressures, the Membership and Social Chairs have had to step down from the Executive. Both these positions play an important part in keeping the membership connected and involved.
The Membership Chair keeps track of both the actual members, their contact information, and the mailing. Membership works closely with the Media Chair to keep members current and informed.
The Social Chair plans, organises and conducts the various events of the Association year.
Anyone interested in filling in these positions until the election of a new Executive in April 2025 can contact the President at president@lornescots.ca
Coming Events
09 Nov – Officers Mess Dinner.
If you were a member of the Officers Mess and haven’t received an invitation, contact the Mess Secretary, Capt Dieter Maahs at lornescotsofficersmess@gmail.com
11 Nov – Remembrance Day services.
Check your local information for locations and times. The Association has been invited to have a marching contingent in the Brampton parade. The parade will form up at the Rose Theatre at 10:00 am. The dress will be mufti and medals.
16 Nov – WO & Sgts Mess Dinner.
If you were a member of the WO & Sgts Mess and haven’t received an invitation, contact the Mess Secretary, WO Miranda Robertson at lornescotswosgtmess@gmail.com
22 Jan – Speakers’ night at the Museum.
Mr. Paul Federico will give a presentation about the poet Robert Burns. Admission is free and the event will start at 7:00 pm.
25 Jan - Pipes and Drums Burns Night.
Dinner and dancing at the Pearson Centre from 6:00 pm. Details and information on tickets will be posted on our social media in Nov.
01 Mar – Toronto Garrison Ball.
For those looking for a gala evening out, the Garrison Ball will be held at the Beanfield Centre on the CNE grounds. Tickets are on sale now. More information can be found at www.garrisonball.ca
Advanced Notice – 2025 is the Association Election year
2025 is an election year for the Association Executive.
If you aren’t happy with the way things have been run in the past, or want to see new things added or changed, this will be your chance to step up and get involved.
Think about standing for a position or convincing someone you think would be a good fit to stand for election to the Executive.
The Association is for the benefit of all members, not just ex CO’s and RSM’s. Bringing new faces and ideas into the leadership is vital to ensuring that the Executive is in touch with the whole membership, not just their peer group.
Think about who you want to see running the Association next year and watch for more details about nominations as we get closer to the Annual General Meeting in April.
How to contribute to the Newsletter
If you have a story about an upcoming event, want to pass on how an event went or something that may be of interest to the Regimental Family, please send a short write up (100 – 150 words or so) with one or two good quality pictures to the President at president@lornescots.com
Please ensure that all people in any submitted pictures have agreed to having their image posted. The Association will assume that such permissions have been acquired before the picture was submitted.
The Association reserves the right to vet all submissions for appropriateness before posting. Items may not be deemed suitable for posting due to inappropriate language or content. Items submitted will reviewed for factual accuracy and may be edited for length.
Any mistakes which may occur are entirely accidental and no malice or harm is ever intended.
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