Nutana Legion holds first-ever drive-through poppy campaign

Organizers at Nutana Legion Branch No. 362 were bundled under jackets in mittens to hand out poppies as part of the legion’s first-ever drive-through poppy campaign Saturday.

Forced to be creative due to COVID-19 concerns and less businesses opting to carry the typical donation tubs, the parking lot was zoned off with pylons and arrows to direct traffic to volunteers accepting donations.

Vice-president Rose-Mary Ferguson never could have imagined standing outdoors on Halloween to deliver poppies at the beginning of the year, but keeping people safe in their vehicles was an obvious choice.

“Never would we have ever thought of doing this, but with COVID since March we were just ready to make the changes as we needed to,” she said. “This is what we came up with this year because we want our people and city folk getting our poppies.”

All four legion branches in Saskatoon were taking part in the drive-through campaign on Saturday.

With plenty of businesses opting not to be part of the poppy campaign this year due to sanitary concerns, Ferguson said a drive-through campaign was essential. Those same safety concerns prevented cadets from running the annual poppy fundraising campaign, known as “Tag Day.”

“This year we’re really desperate for the drive-throughs because today is normally the day for our cadets’ ‘tag day’,” Ferguson said.

“Some of the stores and outlets have not been able to support us, and we totally understand that… so it has affected us in that way.”

People wanting a poppy can still find one in the usual donation tub sitting on the counter at a local business, or they can contact their local legion for an e-transfer donation.

Ferguson didn’t have any expectations for the drive-through campaign, and even though she is concerned about the potential fundraising fallout, she knows Saskatoon has always been there to support its local legion branch.

“Saskatoon and Saskatchewan is so based on our history of our people,” she said. “Over the years, it’s been very apparent. We have a lot of veterans, and it’s the (people) themselves. They’re so good, so supportive. They do believe and they remember our veterans and what the soldiers of today do for us.”