New aluminium murals installed at the Legion, Canada

Royal Canadian Legion Branch 269 has new murals up on the building. Legion president Bill Cavanagh said about four years ago they realized that something had to be done about the old murals as they were falling apart.

He added that when the Legion approached an artist, they realized restoration wasn’t possible with the material that was there so it had to be replicated.

“The original mural is 16 years old and we are looking to hopefully get it down to the museum, at least the portion [of the mural] with the people on it. It can’t be restored. It can be kept as original artwork,” he said.

The new murals are made of aluminium instead of plywood and hence have a longer lifespan.

“Murals on aluminium panels instead of plywood so they can’t corrode or rot,” said Cavannah.

The old murals will be restored as best as they can and they will be donated to the Drayton Valley Museum.

“There will be minor touch-ups. The original murals will be restored at the cenotaph and clear coated as well,” he said.

The Legion hall will also be looking at redoing a wall with a cabinet with glass doors that will hold a wide range of memorabilia. The Legion received grants for the project from the federal government as part of Canada 150 program for Canada’s 150th anniversary in 2017.

“They had grants that were available for community organizations for restorations and projects that would help celebrate the 150th anniversary,” explained Cavannah.

He said the Legion will do an unveiling of its projects upon completion in 2017 as the Legion celebrates its 60th anniversary that year.

The total cost of the project is about $35,000, half of which came from Canada 150 program and the other half came from community donations.