MINUTES OF THE ZONE MEETING HELD AT

BRANCH 002 IN RICHENBACH

ON SATURDAY 26 JANUARY 2008

In Attendance:

Zone                                      Zone Commander                                       Reg Bonnar

                                             Deputy Zone Commander                            Girard Lemay

                                             Zone Secretary                                            Patrick Gaussiran

                                             A/Sgt-at-Arms                                            Guy O’ Quinn

Branch 001                            Membership                                                Cam Audet

                                             Treasurer                                                    Geoff Sanger          

Branch 002                            President                                                   Alfons Deguire

                                             1^st Vice President                                      Bill Fairley

                                             3^rd Vice President                                      Ken Gardiner

                                             Secretary                                                   Rosemarie Miltner

Branch 003                            President                                                  Brian Burchart

                                             Past President                                           Val Laucke

Branch 004                            President                                                 Gaetan Bienvenue

                                             2^nd Vice President                                    Hubert Ganswein

                                             Sgt-at-Arms                                             Harry Irish

Branch 005                          Treasurer                                                   Piet Polderdijk

                                             Sgt-at-Arms                                             Hendrik Kuiper

Observer Members in Attendance:

Branch 001                          Member                                                    Bing Giraud

                                             Member                                                    Raymond (Marty) Martin

                                             Member                                                    Stew Merlin

                                             Member                                                    John Wallace

                                             Member                                                    Theresia Lemay

Branch 002                          Member                                                     Lucien Perraut

                                            Member                                                     Patrick Schuetze

                                            Member                                                     Hans Waeldin

                                            Member                                                     Jacques Cote

                                            Member                                                     Sean De Roe

Branch 003                          Member                                                    Elisabeth Hine

Branch 004                          Member                                                      Irma Irish

                                            Member                                                      Rita Klefenz

Item                                                               Description

Prior to the commencement of the meeting the Zone Commander distributed to each Branch an information folder. The contents of the folder will be listed as Annex A.

1.      The Zone Commander opened the meeting at 1400 hours by welcoming all in attendance saying he hoped all had a very nice holiday season and whished everyone a prosperous and healthy 2008. He introduced Comrade Guy O’ Quinn who is the Sgt-at-Arms of Branch 002 and will act as the Zone Sgt-at-Arms for this meeting in the absence of Comrade Jocelyn Gelinas who because of work commitments is unable to be here today.

The Zone Commander also introduced Mr. Hans Waeldin as a special guest. Hans is a prominent member of the Lahr community and a board member of the Lahr City Council who has a very special relationship with Canadians. I am sure he has many accolades to his credit that I am not aware of but I do know he keeps me personally abreast of developments in the Lahr area. He also visits the Lahr Cemetery on a regular basis and pays special attention to the Canadian Section. We have a tendency to lay flowers and wreaths but no one ensures after they have served their purpose to remove them which Hans does and for that we thank him. Hans has made me promise not to say nice things about him so I will stop for now before he leaves but you will hear more of his work with the Legion later in the program.

The Zone Commander then gave an update on the condition of our two remaining war veterans in the Lahr area including the well being of other members he has been in contact with.

George MacMullen; George continues to do well, the Zone Commander and the President of Branch 002 Alfons Deguire visited him recently, he was in good humour and photos were taken that the Zone Commander sent to his family in Canada which was greatly appreciated. The Zone Commander is pleased with the way George is being cared for in this facility.

Thomas J Andrews; Andy condition unfortunately has not improved although he seems to be resting peacefully.

Ben Zonnenberg; Ben the President of Branch 005 has been quite ill with a bout of pneumonia among other problems and spent several weeks in hospital but is now home and we wish him a speedy recovery.

Heinz Birnesser; Heinz the 2^nd Vice President of Branch 001 fell and broke his leg which was operated on and implanted with the normal array of screws, nuts and bolts he is also at home and we wish him a speedy recovery.

2.      The Zone Commander reviewed the minutes of the last Zone Meeting held at Branch 005 in Lochem, the Netherlands on 06 October 2007 .

Item 17 Reference Zone Europe Pins. The Zone Commander has contacted the supplier requesting a price quote the result was the cost will be roughly €0.60 per pin. The Branches agreed to take 100 each. The Zone Commander will place the order next week.

There being no further discussion to the report a motion to adopt the minutes as presented was made by Comrade Cam Audet and seconded by Comrade Bill Fairley.

3.   The Zone Financial Statement including the petty cash expenditures for the year 2007 was reviewed. There being no observations raised the financial statement was adopted as presented by Comrade Ken Gardiner and seconded by Comrade Brian Burchart.

Motion Carried

Old Business

4.   07 Oct 2007 RAALTE, the Netherlands Ceremony

The Zone Commander expressed his thanks to Branch 005 for the organizing and conducting the ceremony in Raalte which paid tribute to 27 allied Air Force personnel 20 members of the Royal Air Force, 6 from the Royal Canadian Air Force and 1 from the Royal New Zealand Air Force who gave their lives for our freedom. The ceremony was extremely well organized which included a meet and greet, church service, grave site ceremony and the reception. It was evident that a lot of time and effort was put into this ceremony displayed by the cooperation of the mayor, scouts, school children and local population which was excellent. The cemetery was a quite a distance from the church but thanks to Comrade Piet and his band the march was quite pleasant.

Our friend Comrade Bill Fairley had a problem with his health later in the afternoon but was quickly looked after by the medical staff present. As a precautionary measure they took him to a local hospital and thankfully all was in order. The Zone Commander expressed his thanks Comrade Berry Swarthoff for accompanying Bill to the hospital and staying with him until we were able later that evening to pick him up. Also he thanked Comrade Hendrik Kuiper for coming with him to pick up Bill or as the Zone Commander stated he would still be driving around somewhere in Deventer looking for the hospital. All is well that ends well.

5.   20 Oct 2007 IJzendijke Ceremony

The Ceremony is done in two parts, first there is a ceremony at the Canadian War Cemetery in Adegem, Belgium in the morning and in the afternoon a ceremony is conducted at the memorial on a farm near the Dutch village of IJzendijke where the accidental explosion happened taking the lives of 41 soldiers ten of which were Canadian from the Canadian Army Service Corps of the 7th Infantry Brigade.

The president of Branch 002, Alfons Deguire and the Zone Commander joined their British Comrades for this ceremony and provided a Colour Party with our Belgium members. Both ceremonies went very well and we were honoured to have a number of survivors of the incident present again this year. A wreath was laid on behalf of the Royal Canadian Legion at both locations. Thanks to Iris and Daniel Van Landschoot for making our stay a pleasant experience.

6.       03-04 Nov 2007 Beaumont-Hamel and Vimy Ceremonies

Both Remembrance Ceremonies were very well organized and conducted by Ms. Arlene King. Zone Europe provided a Colour Party for both ceremonies. Our presence was appreciated which was acknowledged by the organizers and many prominent guests and dignitaries that were present.

A wreath was laid at both ceremonies on behalf of the Royal Canadian Legion by the Deputy Zone Commander Gerard Lemay.

7.   10 November Passendale Ceremony

The Zone Commander said he tried to get information regarding this ceremony without success. Ms. Boone from the embassy in Brussels called him the day before the ceremony asking if we could be there she said she sent out invitations but to date it has not been received.

We did have a number of our Belgium members attend. Iris reported that the unveiling of a new plaque took place late in the late afternoon it got dark and unless you were at the very front you couldn’t see anything so a lot of people left the site before the ceremony was finished.

This year will mark the 90^th Anniversary of the end of World War I and a number of ceremonies will be planned in the Passendale and Mons area on 10 November and although Branches will have Remembrance Ceremonies on 11 Nov with coordination there is no reason why we couldn’t have a Colour Party attend since on 9 & 10 Nov we will be in Beaumont-Hamel and Vimy which is in the area so to speak so we will consider these events with more information to be announced at a later date.

8.   11 November Branch Remembrance Day Ceremonies

This item will be discussed in report by branches later in the agenda.

9.   18 Nov 2007 Choloy Ceremony

Although it was a collective ceremony with all the Branches in the Lahr/Baden Area represented the Zone Commander expressed his appreciation to Branch 004 for the organization of the ceremony and providing the Colour Party.

We were especially honoured this year to have Rob Donald from Canada present. Rob has both his father F/O RB Donald - Navigator who was killed in the crash of a CF 100 and Uncle F/O BG "Bruce" Donald pilot of an F-86 Sabres that crashed buried in this cemetery. Rob was the first family member to visit the grave site since the accidents and was quite overwhelmed that we do this ceremony. On his return home he sent a letter of appreciation from his family. The Zone Commander read the letter and will be attached a copy as Annex B.

New Business

10. Ceremonies

The Zone Commander said there seems to be still some confusion by members as to how ceremonies are organized. Again for the record the Zone Commander does not select members from the Branches to attend ceremonies. The Zone Commander informs the Branch Presidents of upcoming events and it is the responsibility of the Branch President to selects members from the Branch that will attend. Due to financial reasons Zone can support four members from each Branch which consists of a contingent of twenty members plus. Zone will continue to support members of the zone council and a few of our dedicated members from Belgium . As in the past Branches that don’t fill their quota the Zone Commander allots these positions to other Branches. Branches wishing to send additional members to a particular ceremony may be required to assist financially.

Last year Zone rented a van for some ceremonies in an attempt to eliminate some vehicles expenses however as it turned out that was not the case and consequently added another expense of €600.00 plus to each trip. With the rising costs of fuel and accommodations van rental is simply something we can not afford.

In the future we will have to revert to our old system of travel members wishing to attend ceremonies will have to find someone willing to drive. Zone will continue to pay travel and accommodations expenses. The option for vehicle rental if desired will be the responsibility of the Branch.

When we attend ceremonies we are there as a contingent the scenario is always the same we have an appointed time to depart for the ceremonial sight and I expect that everyone stays together as a group don’t be wandering off on your own to visit local sights or other places of interest there is plenty of time to do this after the ceremony if you so desire.

11.  Elections

The Zone Commander said that the key to having successful elections is planning and preparation. It is impossible to walk into the Branch on election night and organize the election. Information to assist with the election procedures and other points to consider is included in your folders. The Zone Commander wished all Branches successful elections.

12.  Dominion Convention

The 42nd Dominion Convention will be held in Ottawa 22-25 June 2008. The Zone Commander sent a message to the Branch Presidents to complete the Credential Certificate and present it at this meeting so your Branch can be represented by proxy at the convention. If for some reason you did not complete the form pick one up after the meeting and return it by mail on return to your Branch since the Zone Commander has to forward these forms to Dominion Command.

13. Membership

The Zone Commander said the latest report received from Dominion Command indicates the European Branches are doing well in this department most Branches are up from last year so keep up the good work.

He said also that he still hear occasionally members telling him they don’t get any information from their Branch. Your members are your most important asset so do your best to contact them occasionally even those members living in other countries far from your Branch. These members don’t get a chance to drop in at the Branch but they still like feel they are part of the family and want to hear from you.

14.  Correspondence

The Legion Ritual and Insignia Manual call for the Royal Canadian Legion to Dip Colours at ceremonies even though the ritual is not in accordance with the stated policies of the government. The Department of History and Heritage Canada (DHH) the government agency responsible for flag protocol at the national level clearly states that “the Canadian Flag, when carried, is never dipped or lowered to the ground”. The Legion policy on dipping colours has been previously discussed and with written communications passed to DHH, Veterans Affairs and the Canadian Military the problem is the information is not passed down to the organizing committees and has caused confrontations in the past.

Our purpose in attending ceremonies is to pay respect to our fallen comrades and to enhance the ceremony with a Legion Colour Party which we can do regardless of how we carry our colours.

In correspondence with Dominion Command to find a viable solution that will resolve the issue of “Dipping of our Colours” at ceremonies in the future we will conform to the following procedure that is supported by Dominion Command.                                

a.   If the ceremony is organized by the Royal Canadian Legion we will dip colours in accordance with the Ritual and Insignia Manual.

b.   Ceremonies we attend organized by outside agencies that specifically request us not to dip the colours we will respect their position and comply with that request otherwise we will proceed as directed by the Ritual and Insignia Manual.

15.  Report by Branches

Branch 001; The Branch Secretary Patrick Gaussiran reported the Branch has moved to a new locations and for now is operating out of the Gasthaus Löwen in Söllingen which is basically across the street from old location. The Branch has one other option available to them and that is the Curling Club located in the former CFB Baden. The Curling Club bar and lounge is open all year around but this decision will be made by the new executive of the Branch following the elections. In the meantime all scheduled activities will take place at the Gasthaus Löwen in Söllingen.

Branch 002; The President Alfons Deguire requested a few moments and presented Mr. Hans Waeldin with an honorary membership to Branch 002 and an Award of Appreciation for his contribution over the years to the Branch. In particular for the work he done behind the scene in preparation of the Remembrance Day Ceremony by arranging a band, a PA system and advertised the ceremony in the local news paper. Comrade Hans Waeldin was completely surprised but deeply honoured by the presentation. Comrade Alfons thanked the members of the Branch for their support in attending the ceremonies in the Netherlands , Belgium and France since our last meeting highlighting again the Remembrance Day Ceremony where in spite of the rain we had the largest turnout ever and a reception was held at the Branch following the ceremony. The Branch had a successful Christmas Bingo with a good turnout. Bingos continue every second Sunday and invited everyone to attend. The Branch at present is into the organization of the elections and is hoping members will volunteer to serve the Branch and more importantly is to get members to show up on Election Day.

Branch 03; The President Brian Burchart reported the Branch is doing well other than the high cost of heating oil is putting a heavy strain on their budget. The Branch attended several Ceremonies of Remembrance, their own in support of the military in Groesbeek, together with the Royal British Legion in Rheindahlen but by far the most rewarding was the event at the NATO school. It was originally planned for the Canadian school children of about 300 students as it turned out the entire school was there approximately 2,100 students. The President of Branch 005, Ben Zonnenberg was invited as special guest speaker. The topics discussed was the role the Royal Canadian Legion related to Remembrance Day and the hardships endured by the Dutch people during the Second World War the program was very well received. The Branch has been invited to provide a Colour Party for a ceremony that honours 431 Squadron in Sankt-Vith just over the border into Belgium on 17 May details to follow. The branch will be having a small election in the near future to fill some vacancies.

Branch 004; The President Gaetan Bienvenue reported that the Branch had initiation night on 20 October which included distribution of service pins followed by a roast beef dinner which was very successful with a full house. Remembrance Day Ceremony at the Canadian Section of the Mahlberg cemetery was very successful with the best turnout ever. The Branch was able to raise over €130.00 for the poppy fund thanks to the efforts of Comrade Stephanie Politano. Thanks is extended to everyone on the success of the Choloy Ceremony on 18 November. The Branch Christmas dinner on 15 December was excellent again with a full house. Tonight the Branch is having a general meeting followed by a bingo at 2000 hours. Finally just as a reminder a date to mark on your calendar 7 and 8 June will be the Werl Ceremony.

Branch 005; The Sgt-at-Arms reported that there are new security regulations regarding military establishments and if we have any hope of staying in barracks he needs the names and particulars of those persons interested in attending the Liberation of the Netherlands ceremonies three months in advance. Following this meeting please give you list to the Zone Commander. The next event for the Branch will be the elections scheduled for 1 March.

16.  Open Discussion

The Zone Commander said he would like to include a “Last Post” section on the Zone Webpage but would need the cooperation of the Branches outlining the information required of their deceased members and asked the Branches to consider getting him the information required. To be decided at the next Zone Meeting.

Comrade Jacques Cote moved to Langinwinkel which is a suburb of Lahr in 1980 and is a member of the community council. The community will have a celebration on 19 April with the theme “Past & Present”. Since Canadians mad up more that one third of the total population of the community until the pull out of the Canadian Forces in 1994 the mayor has approached him to try and have a Canadian presence at this celebration. He thought it would be an opportunity for the Legion members in the area to be part of this celebration. The Zone Commander said to count him in and coordinate the event with the two Branch Presidents.

17.  Meeting Adjournment

There being no further business to discuss a motion was made by Comrade Brian Burchart and seconded by Comrade Harry Irish that the meeting be adjourned. The meeting was adjourned at 1620 hours.

Note: The next Zone Meeting will be hosted by Branch 001 in Söllingen on Saturday 26 April 2008 at 1400 hours.

Minutes of the Zone Meeting

Held on 06 October 2007

Contents of the Folder,

• Itinerary for the Zone Meeting

• Minutes of last Zone Meeting held at Branch 005 on 06 October 2007
• Financial Statement covering period 04 October 2007 to 19 January 2008
• Correspondence
• Ceremonial Events Calendar for 2008
• Branch Contribution to Ceremonial Fund
• Points to consider for elections
• Election procedures
• Branch Organization Chart

Annex B to the

Minutes of the Zone Meeting

Held on 06 October 2007

In a message dated 12/11/2007 3:49:37 AM W. Europe Standard Time, helidaddy@shaw.ca writes:

Hi Reg,

Just wanted to send a message to let you know that I'm back home again. I had an incredible last week and managed to get to Montbronn despite the train strike. Met up with an older fellow who had witnessed my father's crash. He pointed me in the right direction and I ended up finding the actual crash site. It was a very impactful moment.

More importantly, however, I want to once again thank you and everyone who was at Choloy on the 18th for what you did. I was the representative of our family but there is many members back here who were with me in spirit.

It was wonderful to be able to tell them that your group takes time out of their year to honour the individuals buried at these sites and that they are not forgotten.

We still care very much for these two men. From the bottom of our hearts thank you so much for what you are doing. If you get together for Christmas please thank everyone for me and maybe even tip a pint or two. I know I'll be doing that in your honour.

The three weeks that I spent in Europe will impact our family in a positive way for many many years to come. Have a great holiday season. The Canadian Legion group in Europe will be honored in Vernon over the holidays.

Take care,

Rob Donald