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Step into the Billy Bishop Legion in Vancouver’s Kitsilano neighbourhood on an average Thursday and you might see something a little unexpected.
Pass the veterans sipping pints in the English-style pub that serves as the main lounge, head upstairs and you’ll spot bright, shiny yoga mats unfurled beside the decades-old military memorabilia.
“I enjoy coming here for a good stretch, to feel grounded and a sense of belonging,” said Hannah, a 37-year-old yoga regular who shared only her first name as she set up her mat for a recent class.
Legions across the country that have for decades counted mainly veterans among its members are working to attract younger Canadians like Hannah, whether through innovative events, affordable meals or simply providing a sense of belonging that many are eager to find in their communities. This year, efforts are buoyed by free membership offered to anyone joining for the first time, anywhere in the country, to mark the Royal Canadian Legion’s 100th anniversary.
Legion volunteers also emphasize that military experience is not a prerequisite to walk through their doors.
“I haven’t served, but my grandfather has served in the military in Morocco, and my uncle as well,” Hannah explained, as she recounted her return visits. “And so in a way, it connects me to them — just seeing pictures and stories, it feels like home.”
Supporting veterans, welcoming new faces
Legions have long been hubs for veteran support and advocacy, Remembrance Day ceremonies and community gatherings like Sunday suppers and celebrations of life. Nujma Bond, national spokesperson for the Royal Canadian Legion, stressed that while that core offer hasn’t changed, many branches have found success in evolution.
“This is really a transition time for the Legion, where what we traditionally do will be maintained, but also we look forward to seeing more growth,” Bond told CBC News.
“We are having this huge influx of new members, new ideas, new energy, and with that will come lots of things that will help us grow and maintain what we already do.”
According to its national headquarters, the Royal Canadian Legion has already welcomed more than 100,000 new members in 2026, bringing total membership to north of 300,000.
Still, some legions have had to shutter as recently as earlier this year, with Halifax and Edmonton each witnessing a local branch close its doors due to financial and administrative challenges.
Dennis Mills, a former Liberal MP, now president of the Bala Legion in Muskoka Lakes, Ont., said his branch faced its own dire situation a decade ago.
“We only had 29 members. Another two or three months, we wouldn’t be alive,” Mills told CBC’s The Current.
“But then we evolved. And evolved is the word I like to use all the time, because now we are a place where we have affordable dinners on Friday night, we have concerts that are affordable, and we’ve opened the doors to everyone.”
Mills added the Bala Legion is looking to evolve even further.
“We’re working on this very aggressively — we’re going to zone our lands so that we have 110 affordable rental units,” he explained. “And we believe a portion of that rent coming from those affordable units will help sustain the Legion.”
But sustaining also requires attracting more new members, as Mills emphasized in his pitch to any Canadian considering membership.
“We need you, if we’re going to keep this service to the community healthy and alive and vibrant.”
