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County steps up for military monument

$10K grant for LAV III at MLC
2701 CountyBriefs02 LAV III January 12 2021 Rotary Club Presentation sup
COMING SOON — An artist's rendering of the proposed LAV III military monument by the Morinville Leisure Centre. Sturgeon County council donated $10,000 to this project on Jan. 26, 2021. The project was organized by the Rotary Club of Morinville. ROTARY CLUB OF MORINVILLE/Photo

Sturgeon County council has mobilized $10,000 to help make a proposed LAV III monument near Morinville a reality. 

County council voted 6-0 (Coun. Patrick Tighe abstained) Jan. 26 to give the Rotary Club of Morinville $10,000 to support its LAV III Monument Project. (Tighe abstained from the vote as he was president of the Rotary Club and could be perceived as being in a conflict of interest.)

The money comes from the county’s Significant Growth Revenue Reserve, which as of January 2021 contained $916,000 allocated to community building projects. 

Canada Company, a national military charity, is working to set up hundreds of replica LAV III light armoured vehicles across Canada to honour this nation’s contributions to the war in Afghanistan. In 2015, retired Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Royal Canadians) tank operator Jayson Wood started a drive to bring one of these monuments to Morinville. The Morinville Rotary Club later took on stewardship of the project and broadened its scope to make it a monument to all past, present, and future members of Canada’s military.

The club has purchased the LAV III and plans to install it next to the Morinville Leisure Centre in the near future. 

Morinville Rotary Club president-elect Gordon Putnam asked county council to back the project at a meeting Jan. 12. He suggested a $10,000 donation, which was on par with the $10,000 worth of land the Town of Morinville had donated for the monument. 

Coun. Kristin Toms thanked the Rotary Club for organizing this monument, which she said would be of regional significance.

“Freedom isn’t free, so the more we can do to recognize the sacrifices and the value of our military, the better.” 

In an email, Putnam said Rotary was very pleased by the county’s decision, which would help the group reach its goal to raise some $150,000 for the project.  

Visit morinvillelav.com for details on the memorial. 


Kevin Ma

About the Author: Kevin Ma

Kevin Ma joined the St. Albert Gazette in 2006. He writes about Sturgeon County, education, the environment, agriculture, science and aboriginal affairs. He also contributes features, photographs and video.
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