Legion Acclaims Dominion President at Edmonton Convention
EDMONTON, AB, June 16th 2014 – A Plaster Rock, NB resident has been elected Dominion President of The Royal Canadian Legion. Mr. Tom Eagles was acclaimed today at the Legion’s bi-annual Dominion Convention in Edmonton as the new leader of Canada’s largest Veterans’ based community service organization.
Mr. Eagles is a Life Member and the former President of New Brunswick Command. He has been serving on the Dominion Executive Council in various capacities for more than 10 years. He was first elected to a branch office at Branch 29 Marble Arch in 1985 and has since held various offices at his branch, zone, district and provincial levels.
On acclamation, he became the 41st Legionnaire to hold the office in the organization’s 88-year history.
The Dominion Convention, held every two years, is the Legion’s governing body that sets the policies and programs for the more than 300,000-member organization that was formed after World War 1 in November 1925 at the Malborough Hotel in Winnipeg, MB.
As the Dominion President, he assumes the leadership of the Legion as it enters a new era of responsibilities to Canada’s veterans and their families.
“The basic role of the Legion cannot change,” said Eagles following his acclamation by approximately 1,200 delegates to the Edmonton Convention from across Canada, the United States, Mexico and Europe. “Our purposes and objects were set by the founders of this great organization and we will build on our successes. And even though there are technological and social changes happening within our own structure, we will adapt to our new reality,” he noted.
“My goal during my term of office is to build on the work of my predecessors and fulfill the mandate I have been given by the delegates here today,” he said.
He is the President of the Plaster Rock Minor Hockey Association and worked for the municipality of Plaster Rock for the last 35 years. He is married to the former Cheryl Giberson and they have four children – Ryan, Daniel, Brook and Brett. Comrade Eagles enjoys hockey, baseball and golf.
A high resolution digital photo of Mr. Eagles is available at www.legion.ca/TEagles.jpg for your use as required.
For further information please contact Bruce Poulin at Dominion Command, at (613) 591-3335 ext. 241 or by cell at (613) 292-8760 or bruce.poulin@legion.ca.
