News
Happy 5th Aniversary! – November 14, 2020
The Assiniboine Branch UELAC is celebrating (as best it can with COVID-19 ) the five-year anniversary of our obtaining our Charter and making us the 28th Branch of UELAC. Our first meeting was held in Brandon on November 14, 2015 at the Thunderbird Restaurant.
Loyalist Dispatch November, 2020
Presidents Message from new Branch President Barb Andrew, U.E.
Greetings Fellow Assiniboine Branch Members,
Well, this is not the type of message I envisioned writing when I was elected
president of our branch to be sure! There is uncertainty over day-to-day life, growing
concern for our elderly and medically vulnerable citizens, anxiety over our well-being and
the economy that consume our thoughts.
The pandemic, which is foremost in all our thoughts these days, has necessitated the
switch to virtual meetings for the foreseeable future. Covid-19, on the surface, is
definitely something that, seemingly, puts a massive damper on many of our activities.
However, it does not have to hold us down. We all have the ability to avail ourselves of
any of the multitude of educational and entertainment sites on line to keep our minds
active and engaged!
Personally, I have taken the opportunity during this time of social distancing and stay at home
orders to visit virtually, many museums and art galleries around the world. What a treat it has
been to sit back in my easy chair enjoying numerous concerts on line that would not
normally be available to me. Other activities have included numerous free genealogical
workshops and presentations offered by Legacy, Ancestry, Ontario Ancestors (formally OGS)
and so many more! I have to admit that there have been times I have double booked myself,
registering for two different presentations on the same day at the same time!
Is there any way we create interest in our group during this time of isolation?
Indeed we can! Mention our Loyalist ancestry and involvement in Christmas greetings to family
and friends. Consider sharing interesting items about the Loyalists and UELAC to our social
media circle. If there is a community newspaper in our area that may be looking for articles,
submit an article or contact the Education and Outreach and Membership committees with the
name of the publication and the editor. We may not be able to visit a class room right
now…but we can offer a Loyalist power point presentation to a teacher to share with their
history class. I wear my UELAC mask anytime I leave the house and was able to give my
Doctor a wee “Loyalist” history lesson when he commented on the mask during a recent
appointment.
What can we do to keep interest in UELAC? First and foremost the association and our
Assiniboine Branch need everyone to renew their membership. If you have any difficulties
please contact Membership Chair Joyce or Treasurer Lance and they will be happy to assist. As
well, the Branch executive is intent on planning interesting meetings, presentations
and events over ZOOM until we can safely meet in-person.
The next event will be our virtual Christmas meeting. Watch your email inbox
for the invitation with date, time and link. Hopefully everyone will join in with a
beverage of choice and maybe a Christmas goodie to share some fellowship.
Together— while being apart. Looking forward to seeing lots of Christmas Sweaters!
Please take care and stay safe!
Loyally,
Barb
Loyalist Dispatch Summer 2018
Presidents Message
This year our Assiniboine Branch held our Spring and 2nd Annual General Meeting at the
Rotary Villas in Brandon on April 28th. There was a really good turnout of members and guests
this year and I really enjoyed meeting and visiting with many who attended. Several Certificates
were given out and we were pleased to see members and their families from outside the
Westman area,
We also had an Executive Meeting in Portage on May 10th attended by both Executive and
Program Chairpersons. We went through lots of business and we have a good course charted for
2018. Hopefully future circumstances will allow all the various goals to be reached.
Several Assiniboine Branch and Manitoba Branch members attended the proclamation of
Manitoba’ Loyalist Day in Manitoba, on May 24th in the Manitoba Legislature. One of our
youngest members, Nixon Adair, UE, enjoyed the event, particularly when all the Loyalists in
the gallery stood and the MLA’.s congratulated us with applause. I was presented a framed copy
of the Proclamation that was read in the Legislature by The Honourable Cathy Cox, Minister of
Sport, Culture and Heritage.
There is a write up further down in this “Loyalist Dispatch” about the 2018 UELAC Conference
in Moose Jaw that several members attended. I won’t say any more but we had a wonderful
time meeting old friends and making new ones. I will add that the Calendar Fund Raising effort
by Liz was very successful and the resulting funds will be used to purchase further cemetery
plaques.
I am pleased to see our membership numbers increase once again this year. I am hopeful as we
become better known others will take up Assiniboine UELAC membership. Liz and I are
hoping to be allowed permission to set up an Assiniboine Branch display at both Gladstone and
Roblin Fairs in August. They are on the second weekend and we would be at Gladstone on
Friday and Roblin Saturday.
Further information will be coming your way and if you are interested in helping out give me a
call.
I was pleased and proud to accept a Certificate of Appreciation for the Assiniboine Branch’s
donation to the Loyalist Scholarship Endowment Fund while we were at the Conference and
AGM in Moose Jaw. We were one of several branches to be singled out for our efforts. There
are pictures of the ceremony in this newsletter.
We have ordered plaques to be installed at cemeteries where descendents of Loyalists are
buried. Virden, Carroll and Dauphin Cemeteries are the ones chosen for this year. We have a
dedication ceremony scheduled for Dauphin on September 8th, to be held as a meeting. I will be
sending out a “Whoozin” invitation in a couple of weeks or so to let everyone know the details.
I am looking forward to our next Assiniboine Branch meeting and seeing everyone again. Enjoy
the summer!
James Adair UE President – Assiniboine Branch UELAC
Loyalist Dispatch Christmas 2017
President’s Message
This year our Assiniboine Branch held our Fall Meeting at Rotary Villas in Brandon on October 14th. I really enjoyed the venue and meeting up with everyone who attended. We were especially pleased to see Certificates presented to Dave Stantial for his ancestors Isaac Gilbert, UEL and Peter Wyckoff, UEL; Nixon Adair for his ancestor William McCorquodale Bell, UEL; Marlene Rodger for her ancestor Jacob Ott, UEL and Beverly Brain for her ancestor Jacob Ott, UEL. After the meeting a certificate was presented to Ivan Forsyth at Brandon Regional Health Centre for his ancestor Christopher Lake UEL.
In September Reg Hickmott attended a dedication ceremony in Squirrel County, Pennsylvania where a plaque was dedicated at the Simon Girty homestead who is Reg’s ancestor. Barb read a statement from Reg concerning his trip. We are very proud to have a descendant of Simon Girty, the Loyalist hero, as an Assiniboine Branch member.
Part of the “Conferences – Past and Future” presentation was Pat Adair speaking of the 2018 UELAC Dominion Conference and AGM to be held in Moose Jaw next year. It seems the Saskatchewan Branch has a really good start on organizing it and I personally am looking forward to attending. Liz is working on the feasibility of arranging a bus to take Manitoba and Assiniboine Branch members to and from Moose Jaw for the Conference.
I am pleased to see that our membership renewal is going well. We have several new members and Lance will likely send out an Assiniboine Membership List to us early next year. I am hopefully we will have an increase in members for 2018.
We intend to have an Assiniboine Branch Promotion Display at some local fairs next year. We need to get the “fair list” for 2018 in order to arrange attending. I will keep everyone posted on progress as we go forward. If you are interested in helping out give me a call.
Liz, our Genealogist, has been very busy this fall working with others to get their UELAC certificates. I am not sure of the numbers but her report is included elsewhere in this newsletter.
I encourage everyone to go onto the Assiniboine Branch Facebook page at Assiniboine UELAC. . Dave and Liz are working to improve our Website at http://www.uelac.org/assiniboine/ . You can go there to see what is going on with our branch. If you would like to contribute information or articles to either please contact Dave or Liz
We are planning to order some more cemetery plaques to be installed at cemeteries where descendents of Loyalists are buried. The proposed list now includes Rosewood, Carroll and Dauphin Cemeteries for 2018. We are working on dedication ceremonies for the plaques installed in 2017 at Reston and Woodville Cemeteries next spring or summer.
I am looking forward to our next Christmas Assiniboine Branch meeting to see everyone again. And of course if past experience is any indicator the potluck lunch will be a tremendous success!
Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and all the best in 2018!
James Adair UE
President – Assiniboine Branch UELAC
Happy Anniversary!
November 14, 2017 marked the second anniversary of our inaugural meeting, and what an amazing two years it has been. Since that first meeting we have grown to nearly 50 member with 10 new members in the last year. Even more impressive are the 15 new certificates presented our members with 2 more that have been submitted for approval with our genealogist working on 21 more! As you can see it has been an eventful two years the Assiniboine Branch. Here is to another successful 2 years and many more to come.
Loyalist Dispatch – Autumn 2017
President’s Message
This summer our Assiniboine Branch didn’t hold any regular meetings. However it seems to me
we were quite busy. Our next meeting will be our Fall Meeting on October 14th at Rotary Villas in
Brandon.
Some Assiniboine Branch members attended the Potluck Barbeque that took place at Pat and
Gerry Adair’s farm in the Maryfield District of Saskatchewan. The Saskatchewan Branch invited
the Assiniboine Branch and we enjoyed a wonderful time of visiting with old friends and new as
well as sharing in a wonderful picnic. A big thank you to Pat and Gerry for such a delightful
afternoon and letting everyone tour their home. Our four year old grandson, Nixon, certainly
enjoyed the front and back staircases and exploring the large yard!
I am pleased to see our membership numbers have increased again. We stand at 42 members now;
which is 134% of last year’s number. Liz and I attended the Hamiota Fair on July 20 and had an
Assiniboine Branch table set up to “show the flag”. We were told we could be set up from 1 to 5
pm but everyone else closed up at 4 so we did too. We had several interested people stop and chat.
We had made up a brochure for the event that we handed out as well as my Assiniboine Branch
“business” cards. We are starting to learn what worked for us and what we will do different next
time.
Liz, Cathy Darbell, Barb Andrew, Pat Adair, Gerry Adair and I attended the re-dedication of the
Manitoba Branch Plaque in the Manitoba Legislature Building last Tuesday. We also went to
Government House to meet the Lieutenant Governor, take part in a short ceremony and to enjoy
refreshments there. The President of the Manitoba Branch apologized to me for them being unable
to invite the Assiniboine Branch members because of the size of the venue available at
Government House. As the people mentioned are also Manitoba Branch members the invitation
included us.
We received two Cemetery Plaques that were ordered from Rapid City Memorials that are meant
to be installed at cemeteries where descendents of Loyalists are buried. Liz and I installed one at
Reston Cemetery and the caretaker at Woodville Cemetery will install the one at that cemetery.
We hope to have a dedication ceremony held at each site and membership will be made aware of
the time and date when determined. This will be an ongoing project until all the cemeteries, where
Loyalist descendents are buried, have a plaque.
I encourage everyone to go onto Assiniboine Branch Facebook page at Assiniboine UELAC and
our Website at http://www.uelac.org/assiniboine/to see what is going on with our branch. If you
would like to contribute information or articles to the website please contact Dave to make sure it
gets entered. Our website is still in the initial stages of development and will change with the
addition of more sections as we are able. If you want things added to the Facebook Pages send to
either Dave or Liz and they can enter it for you.
James Adair UE
President – Assiniboine Branch UELAC
Loyalist Dispatch – Summer 2017
President’s Message
This year our Assiniboine Branch held our Spring meeting at the Fort Le Riene Museum in
Portage La Prairie on June 10th. I really enjoyed the venue and meeting up with everyone
who attended. Next year our Spring Meeting will be our Annual General Meeting as we had
elected officers in October of 2016 and our new Branch Bylaws came into effect after that
date.
We also celebrated Loyalist Day in Manitoba on June 10th at the home of Reg and Heather
Hickmott. I presented to the Assiniboine Branch a copy of the Proclamation that was read in
the MB Legislature on June 1st by Honourable Rochelle Squires. Thank you to Reg and
Heather for once again opening their house for this meeting.
I am pleased to see our membership numbers increase this year. I am hopeful as we become
better known others will take up Assiniboine UELAC membership. Barb put up a display at a
Brandon Historical Society event that attracted interest and a new member. Liz and I are
going to attend the Hamiota Fair on July 20 and have an Assiniboine Branch table set up to
“show the flag”. If you are interested in helping out give me a call. I will try to arrange
attending another fair in August as well.
I was pleased and proud to accept a Certificate of Appreciation, at the Dominion AGM in
London, for the Assiniboine Branch’s $500 donation to the Loyalist Scholarship Endowment
Fund. We were one of seven branches to be singled out for our efforts. There are pictures of
the ceremony in this newsletter.
I encourage everyone to go onto Assiniboine Branch Facebook page at Assiniboine UELAC
and our Website at http://www.uelac.org/assiniboine/to see what is going on with our
branch. If you would like to contribute information or articles to the website please contact
Dave to make sure it gets entered. Our website is still in the initial stages of development
and will change with the addition of more sections as we are able. If wanting to add things to
the facebook pages send to either Dave or Liz and they can enter it for you.
We have ordered two plaques to be installed at cemeteries where descendents of Loyalists
are buried. Reston and Woodville Cemeteries are the two chosen for this year. Once they are
installed we hope to have a dedication ceremony held at each site.
I am looking forward to our next Assiniboine Branch meeting to see everyone again. Enjoy
the summer!
James Adair UE
President – Assiniboine Branch UELAC
UELAC Assiniboine Branch Executive challenges its members to raise funds for the Loyalist Scholarship Endowment Fund
I am sure you have all heard of the Canada 150 projects going on all over Canada to celebrate the 150th year of Confederation. The Dominion Scholarship Committee is challenging all UELAC branches to raise $300.00, by July 1, 2017, in support of the Loyalist Scholarship Endowment Fund. Branches accepting the challenge will have their name added to Dominion Target 300 updates. A special wrap-up announcement will take place at the June 24 AGM in London.
The scholarship itself is provided to graduate students that are studying Loyalist history, the contribution the Loyalists made in the development of Canada, researching our Loyalist ancestors and the circumstances surrounding the American Revolution. Students who are awarded a UELAC Loyalist Scholarship agree to present a copy of their research to UELAC on completion of their degree. These dissertations are added to the Dominion resource library as resources for members researching family history and genealogy. The benefits from the UELAC scholarship program continue after the student graduates as relationships are developed with young academics willing to participate in future UELAC projects, events and conferences.
The Assiniboine Branch of the UELAC Executive have thought it would be fun to challenge our members to have the opportunity to contribute to this worthwhile project. For the challenge to membership we have budgeted $250.00 to match dollar for dollar the total donations up to that limit. All contributions, big or small, will be appreciated. I am sure we can meet the “Target $300 for Canada 150” challenge.
Cheques made out to the Assiniboine Branch UELAC can be mailed, or given, to Lance Lidster, 10 Mulberry Crescent, Brandon, MB. R7A 0Y9. There will also be an opportunity to bring cheques or cash to the Spring meeting to be held May 6th. [more news of that meeting is forthcoming]. Donations of over $10.00 will receive a tax receipt from Dominion UELAC.
Next UELAC Assiniboine Branch Meeting – 6May Time TBA – Fort La Reine Museum – 2652 Saskatchewan Ave Portage la Prairie.
http://www.fortlareinemuseum.com/
UELAC Assinboine Branch purchased banners for Community Awareness events.
Assiniboine Branch members will gather to celebrate our Loyalist Ancestors that moved west and settled in south western Manitoba and south eastern Saskatchewan with a flag raising on Sunday, June 12th, 2016 at 11:00 am Bring a lawn chair and a food item for the pot luck luncheon. 1335 Victoria Avenue Brandon