Cadets handing out poppies were told to leave Kitchener mall

KITCHENER - A group of cadets handing out poppies at CF Fairview Park Mall in Kitchener were asked to leave the property on Saturday.

The cadets, part of the 1596 Royal Highland Fusiliers of Canada Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps, were told they did not have a permit to be inside the mall to hand out poppies leading up to Remembrance Day.

But Don Gingrich, Kitchener's Royal Canadian Legion Fred Gies Branch 50 poppy campaign manager, said on Saturday he has an email confirming the permit.

He said there must have been some sort of mixup with the mall's management team, as cadets have always handed out poppies at the mall.

Gingrich said they have never had any issues at the location in the past.

For some reason, they weren't aware that we've been doing this every year for as long as I can remember," he said. I even have a copy of the email sent that we were cleared to be there."

The mall management did not immediately respond to questions from the Record.

Darin Hoshoian was walking into the mall entranceway when the cadets were asked to leave on Saturday. He said the situation made him feel disappointed, upset and angry."

The young men volunteering their Saturday to hold the poppy boxes were not soliciting people or obstructing the entrance at all," he said.

In fact, they were barely in the mall as they were standing between the doors just trying to stay warm and out of the rainy dampness."

There's been the odd occasion through the years when volunteers have been told they couldn't hand out poppies at certain locations, said Gingrich, but it's never happened at a location where they've already been cleared to be there.

Hoshoian said watching the cadets be forced to leave has left a lasting impact on him.

The poppy is a symbol of respect for the men and women who throughout the history of Canada have sacrificed their lives, limbs and families so that we may enjoy the freedoms we so often take for granted," he said.

Show me your papers' is exactly the kind of situation and statement our veterans fought to avoid."

Permits for locations are secured through the K-W Poppy Fund, a group of local Legion members responsible for sending volunteers and donation boxes across the city at participating locations.

The 2021 Poppy Campaign kicked off on Friday at 11 a.m., with the raising of the Poppy Flag at the K-W Poppy Fund office on Marsland Drive.

Poppies are given out for free, but donations are accepted in the lead-up to Remembrance Day on Nov. 11.

Poppy funds are used to provide emergency assistance such as shelter, food, fuel, clothing, prescription medicine and necessary transportation for ex-service personnel and their families.

This marks the second year the poppy campaign has run during the COVID-19 pandemic.

While protocols have been loosening in Ontario, Gingrich did not say whether precautions over the pandemic may have played into the mall's decision to ask the group to leave.

He said he will ask the K-W Poppy Fund to contact the mall on Monday to figure out what needs to be done in order to return.

Robert Williams is a Waterloo Region-based reporter for The Record. Reach him via email: robertwilliams@torstar.ca