On the corner of William Street and First Avenue stands the Royal Canadian Legion with its new roof glistening in the sunshine. Gathered around the flag pole stands a dozen men and women in Legion jackets with medals jingling in the cool breeze.

The old flag is removed and a new one put back in its place. The Veterans stand tall and proud as they sing a prayer hymn to God for our Queen and they stay standing tall and proud as they sing our national anthem.

The Veterans file inside for a short prayer service. A piper plays "Amazing Grace" and the Padre prays for this country of Canada, for our Queen, for our Veterans and for those who are still in the midst of battle.

We are reminded of God's grace and the beauty of this country as we prayed: "Almighty and merciful God, to thee we yield hearty thanks for thy loving-kindness in appointing this good land of Canada to be our dwellingplace among the nations; for the wealth and glory of its plans and mountains, its fruitful fields and teeming waters; for the precious things of heaven, the dew, the sunshine, snow and rain in their season, and the precious things of the earth and the fullness thereof; for a land wherein there is bread without scarceness.

For all this, we bless thee and magnify thy Name. Amen." (Canadian Anglican Book of Common Prayer, 1962, adapted.)

But it isn't November 11. It is September 16, the beginning of Legion Week. A week intentionally set apart to help us to give thanks to and for the Veterans - those brave men and women who fought in the wars and who returned home. Each year, it seems, there are fewer and fewer Veterans of the great wars and the other conflicts that followed. Coming back from war can be a terrible thing. Many Veterans do not like to talk about their wartime experiences because it brings forth too many terrible and painful memories.

And some, are simply not able to give voice to the horror they experi- enced.

Each year, on the eleventh day of the eleventh month at the eleventh hour, we stand in silence as we remember the many men and women who lost their lives to war that we might win freedom and peace.

During Legion Week, we have an opportunity to express our gratitude, love and appreciation to those who fought so bravely and who returned home with fractured memories, broken hearts and wounded bodies. These men and women are too easily forgotten in this busy world of ours. So many are old and frail and unable to speak out for themselves.

T o o often they are pushed to the side, their sacrifice taken for granted. The Royal Canadian Legion strives to change that, to provide a place of dignity and remembrance for our living Veterans.

Legion Week is an opportunity for us to remember and to give thanks for our Veterans, to show, in some small way that we do not take for granted what they did for us on the bloody battlefields so long ago. Did you know that there is a small museum at the Legion and that there is almost always some there who is willing to talk to you about what is there?

There are other events at the Legion this week, for Veterans and for the public. Give them a call or drop by. You can also go on-line to www.legion.ca to learn more about the Royal Canadian Legion and the Veterans that it serves.

And soon, members of the Legion will be in our community selling Poppies for Remembrance Day. Buy a new one this year. Buy a few.

And when you stop to put your coins or paper in the box, take some time to say thank you, to express your appreciation for what these Veterans have done and continue to do by their presence among us.