Image Credit: CFJC Today
ROYAL CANADIAN LEGION

Annual poppy campaign kicks off in Kamloops

Oct 30, 2020 | 4:29 PM

KAMLOOPS — It’s described by the Royal Canadian Legion as a local initiative. However, the poppy campaign takes place across Canada in the days leading up to Remembrance Day as Legion branches raise money to help veterans in a variety of ways.

Here in Kamloops, the local poppy campaign office opened up in Kamloops Square, at 257 Seymour Street. Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, poppy boxes and volunteers can be found at locations throughout the city. Craig Thompson, past president of the local Legion branch, says donations have already started rolling in for Remembrance Day wreaths. He’s hopeful that bodes well for the campaign overall.

“We really don’t know what to expect this year, yet. We’ve already had people coming to us and going us generous donations — again, this is really early,” Thompson says. “We’ve got the poppies out there now in a lot of businesses. We are in most of the malls with tables during the day. We’ll see what happens. Today is our first day out there, so we’ll see how it goes.”

While COVID-19 has already affected the local Remembrance Day ceremony, Thompson wants the public to know that poppies are still available as they normally would be, throughout the city.

“They’ll see the poppy boxes and tables at a number of businesses. Certainly, come up and drop a couple of coins into the box and take some poppies out. Encourage everyone you know to wear a poppy for the next ten or eleven days.”