Every September is a special month for the Alberni Project Society and this year is no exception. With special events for both the traveling exhibit of The Alberni Project (TAP) and the HMCS Alberni Museum and Memorial (HAMM), local residents will have many opportunities to experience 100 years of Canadian military history next month.
A major activity for the museum next month will be a volunteer drive to celebrate the beginning of HAMM’s fifth year in the Comox Valley and the start of the 18th year since TAP’s founding.
With HAMM’s four-month long summer Great War exhibit closing on Sept. 2, the museum is looking forward to the observance of Canadian Merchant Navy Veterans Day on Sept. 3 with special hours. The City of Courtenay will join in this observance with the raising of the Red Duster in front of City Hall on Sept. 1 to honour all the Canadian Merchant Navy who served Canada during the Second World War. The Red Duster will fly at City Hall through the weekend.
A Night In The 40’s Dance, sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Courtenay, will be held at 7:00 p.m. on Sept. 10 at the Royal Canadian Legion Branch 17 in Courtenay. This new annual event is one of the main fund raising projects of TAP and the Kiwanis and is sure to sell out of the “rationed” amount of tickets. Proceeds from the dance will benefit HAMM and other local Kiwanis programs through the year.
The Dance, however, is not the only fund raising event scheduled for September. The annual sale of the “I Will Remember” lawn and patio signs begins in earnest at HAMM and will continue through December while supplies last. Beside being a major source of income for the museum’s annual budget, 10 per cent of all lawn sign sales is earmarked for the RCSCC 189 Port Augusta, Comox Valley’s own Sea Cadet Corp.
Rounding off September will be smaller appearances of The Alberni Project’s mobile memorial and the opportunity to discuss the history of the Battle of the Atlantic with some of the society’s volunteers. Local residents can come and support TAP at REXPO on Sept. 9 at 19 Wing Comox.
Tickets for A Night In The 40’S DANCE can be purchased for $40 per couple ($20 if you are alone) and can be found at HAMM’s front desk in the Tulio’s Plaza , 625 Cliffe Avenue or at Square 1 Travel at 449-B 5th Street, Courtenay. Tickets will not be available at the door.
For more information on upcoming HAMM events, please call the museum at 250-897-4611. All visitors during the month of September will receive a free gift.