Veteran’s banners coming to Raymond in November

By Cal Braid
Westwind Weekly News

The Town of Raymond’s beautification committee is hosting a veteran’s banner program for the first time this year. The program is designed as a show of respect for living and deceased veterans from the town. Their names and faces will be featured on the banners. The program application letter, posted to the Town’s website stated, “It is a project to recognize, honour, and remember all those who have sacrificed so we can live in peace in our communities. We will be assisted by our local Rotarians.”
According to the application, “The Royal Canadian Legion defines a veteran as, ‘any person who is serving or who has honorably served in the Canadian Armed Forces, the Commonwealth or its wartime Allies, or as a regular member of the RCMP or as a Peace Officer in a special duty area or on a special duty operation, or who has served in the Merchant Navy or Ferry Command during the war.’”
Monette Dudley, chairman of the town’s beautification committee said the project was initiated by a subcommittee led by Robin Steed, Debbie Witbeck, Barb Depew, Marilyn Price, and Dudley herself. The banners were designed and created by Rhonda Steed, will be constructed of vinyl, and printed at Flagworks in Calgary.
The application process closed on Aug. 1. It required that the honoured veteran must be from Raymond originally or currently reside in town. Living veterans were to provide consent in writing. The banners will be displayed this fall from Nov. 1 to Nov. 15. The application letter noted that, “All the banners will be the same uniform design. The only changes will be the name and photo. An individual, family, organization, or company may sponsor a banner.”
Dudley said, “We have room for 22 banners: six at the library, and 16 going down Main Street from the museum to the corner of Broadway and Highway 52 by Burger Baron. This year, we have filled all 22 spots.” The banners went for $200 each. Dudley is a volunteer and said the proceeds from the banner program will go to the beautification committee for more projects on Main Street.
When asked for the approximate number of living veterans in town, Dudley took a guess but then added, “I would hate to give numbers though and be incorrect. Every veteran is important, I don’t want to leave anyone out.”
Westwind Weekly will feature pictures when the banners go up in November.

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