Moose Jaw’s Royal Canadian Legion Branch No. 59 is thrilled with how its Canada Day Cabaret turned out, as the event attracted more people than expected and raised a nice chunk of change.
The fundraiser kicked off at 5 p.m. on July 1 and, throughout the evening, featured the bands of Brandon and Company and The Milkman’s Sons, which entertained hundreds of patrons keen on celebrating Canada’s 155th birthday and helping the legion raise money for a new building.
The music finished at 1 a.m., and by 2 a.m., the well-attended event was over.
The cabaret was amazing and attracted a bigger crowd than organizers expected, said Justin Eddison, public relations officer. There were no issues with patrons being intoxicated and causing trouble, while the only issue the legion faced was not having enough seating for everyone who attended.
There were 260 available chairs that took up one-quarter of the venue, which stretched from Third Avenue Northwest to almost the end of Second Avenue Northwest on High Street West.
“Overall, we typically deemed it a huge success,” he added.
The legion sold 641 tickets to its Canada Day Cabaret. While organizers expected about 500 people to attend, they ensured the venue could hold up to 700 people, Eddison explained. So, nearly reaching capacity demonstrated how much the event exceeded expectations — particularly since the legion only received permission to hold the event days before.
Although the legion is still counting how much it officially earned from the cabaret, Eddison noted that the organization netted more than $10,000 in profit based on current data. This was one of the bigger fundraisers the organization has held in some time.
“So far, everything that we’ve heard has been positive,” he continued. “In regards to chairs, we allowed people to bring in their own camp chairs when that became an issue. I think that resolved most of our issues there.
“But the general reception from the public is that they were super happy with how the event went. Everyone had a really good time and they hope we put on this event again next year.”
Eddison commended both bands with great performances, while numerous people danced to the up-tempo music throughout the night.
While partying can be fun, there is also the cleanup to consider. Once patrons were gone by 2 a.m., the first team of legion volunteers began tearing down the site and worked for an hour before going home. Two more teams then showed up at 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. to finish cleaning and ensure High Street West was open to traffic.
“We were nice and quick and efficient. The city said it had to all be done by 12 (noon) and we wanted to make sure we didn’t step on anyone’s toes, and we lived up to our commitment,” said Eddison.
Branch No. 59 is still far off financially from securing a new building, while inflation is making paying for a new home difficult, he continued. However, the organization has plenty of events scheduled for July and August that it hopes will contribute to its bank account.
Eddison added that the legion is thankful for the support the community gave its Canada Day Cabaret.
