Royal Canadian Legion Branch #291 Okotoks
Okotoks Legion Branch #291, PO Box 937 T1S 1B1 Okotoks, AB, Canada

Malcolm and Rick paid tribute to Winston Parker at his graveside as Covid restrictions meant that we could not give him the military send off he deserved. Lest we Forget!

Hi All, The Never Forgotten National Memorial, approved to be built at Green Cove, in the Cape Breton National Park, under the Conservative Government, had funding cancelled after the 2016 election and Parks Canada has now withdrawn from the bargaining table for a License of Occupation (aka Building Permit) necessary to allow the Foundation to raise funds for the monument. Petition e-3017 has been raised to convince the Minister of Environment and Climate Change to have Park...s Canada to return to the Bargaining Table with the intention of working out a Building Permit for the monument. More information is at nfnm.ca Your support is critical to moving this forward. Please read the Petition below and then go to https://petitions.ourcommons.ca/en/Account/Login then Register and sign the petition. Thanking you in advance. Bob McLeod, President 403-603-8842 Petition e-3017 to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Whereas: More than 214,000 of Our Fallen, in war and conflicts in the service of Canada, are buried overseas or have no known grave; Many descendants, relatives and friends are unable to ever visit the final resting place of those Fallen by reason of cost or travel restrictions or other reasons; These Canadians gave their lives to help preserve the society and freedoms we enjoy today; The Never Forgotten National Memorial Foundation (NFNMF) has been created to construct a fitting monument to those fallen Canadians at Green Cove, on the eastern shore of Cape Breton Island, in the Cape Breton National Park, which depicts Mother Canada welcoming home the souls of these 214,000, and the souls of those Canadians who will be lost in the same manner in the future; A License of Occupation (aka Building Permit) from Parks Canada is needed by NFNMF in order to initiate a fundraising campaign to construct this monument; and There is an impasse between Parks Canada and NFNMF preventing the issuance of this License of Occupation, and Parks Canada has withdrawn from the negotiating table. We, the undersigned, Citizens of Canada, call upon the Minister of Environment and Climate Change to direct that Parks Canada return to the negotiating table with NFNMF with a clear mandate to, respectfully and in good faith, work out whatever differences remain unresolved in order to move forward with officially granting a License of Occupation to the NFNM Foundation. History Open for signature December 10, 2020, at 3:27 p.m. (EDT) Closed for signature March 10, 2021, at 3:27 p.m. (EDT) Member of Parliament John Barlow Foothills Conservative Caucus Alberta

http://www.elinorflorence.com/blog/rcaf-airwoman-yorkshire

Donation made to the legion on the 9th November for the Poppy Campaign by Bryce and the team at Fountain Tire, apologies for not posting at the time.

We at Branch 291 (Okotoks) extend our condolences to the family of Winston Parker who passed away this week at the age of 103. This includes his niece, Marion Kennedy and her husband Hugh who arranged for Winston's banner to be hung as part of this year's Poppy campaign. On a personal note, from Malcolm "I had the privilege of presenting him with a Life Membership in our organization and from there maintaining a long friendship with him. In 2018, I met with him and Elaine Ta...ylor Thomas at his home where we talked at length about the book that she had written on his life. Elaine who now lives in Texas was a neighbour of Winston as she grew up. She wrote "Saddles and Service" as "the story" of his life as a rancher and Air Force Bomber crew. A pride of possession for me is the book with both signatures as well as the photographs of the occasion. Winston Churchill Parker was named for the British Prime Minister and he tells the story of meeting his namesake as well as a wartime ride in Churchill's car with the attendant respect shown by the people witnessing it". He was a RCAF WWII Veteran who was shot down and spent years as a POW. He survived imprisonment and the cruel "Kriege" forced marches. He returned to his beloved Alberta where he lived a long and productive life in the area of Millarville. He was still living in his own residence here in Okotoks. During our recent Poppy Campaign he had made his usual substantial contribution making sure that he found a way to deliver his cheque. He had previously made a donation to our Building Fund. He was a strong supporter of many local initiatives including the Nanton Bomber Command museum and the Millarville Fairground. There will be a private family burial at Christ Church, Millarville on Nov 26th. We will look into a small presence there at a distance to provide our Last Respects. A hero passed away. We will Remember.

The Bomber Command Museum of Canada wishes to announce to all our members, with heavy hearts, deep loss, and sadness, the sudden passing of a great Canadian RCAF warrior, patriot, and truest of Alberta's cowboys, Winston Churchill Parker. He passed away gently on Tuesday morning, in his sleep, taking his last flight to his reward. He was 102 years young!