Army, Navy and Air Force Veterans Unit # 5 Spitfire Lounge (Submitted image)

By Kevin Rothwell

Army, Navy Airforce Veterans

Vernon club defies declining membership trend

Jan 21, 2023 | 8:30 AM

A quick Google search on the health of service clubs in Canada reveals pages of news stories about organizations struggling, primarily due to an aging membership and failure to attract new people.

Covid restrictions were especially hard on clubs that relied on congregating for events and socializing. Attracting younger members has been difficult with busy lifestyles and a trend toward giving money versus time.

That is not the case with the local chapter of the Army Navy and Air Force Veterans Spitfire Unit # 5, which is experiencing a surge in membership, having sworn in dozens of new members this month.

“We have a really good executive and we are all working hard to try and build our membership. In 2021, we dropped to 175 partly due to COVID; in 2022 we brought it up to 268, and so far for 2023, we are at 225. I believe we won’t have a problem increasing that membership to probably 300,” Unit #5 president Erwin Ruf told Vernon Matters.

A.N.A.F. operates a licensed lounge, kitchen and banquet hall at 2500-46th Avenue, instantly recognizable by the full-sized Spitfire fighter plane at the front of the building. The lounge offers free pool, darts and shuffleboard. There is also a covered patio with a grill and large lawn and garden area.

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Attracting new and younger members has been a priority, to keep the organization viable.

“If we don’t have members, we don’t have a club and that is the issue for some across Canada that are closing. Their membership is getting older, as ours is,” Ruf said. “We are trying to attract younger people and that is going to make us more viable. The younger ones will carry on as us that are getting older step aside.”

The lounge often has live entertainment on weekends, special events, and a weekly Saturday meat draw.

Funds raised by the unit and its ladies auxillary help fund dozens of local charities.

Since 1997, Statistics Canada has been keeping tabs on the level of formal and informal volunteering in Canada.

The last “Volunteering counts: formal and informal contributions of Canadians” report was published in 2018.

When looking at formal volunteering, which would include membership in a service club, the report showed the following.

• 12.7 million Canadians engaged in formal volunteering.
• 41 per cent of Canadians dedicated 1.6 billion hours.
• Formal volunteering decreased with age although hours volunteered were highest among the oldest generations.
• The older generations were more likely to be top volunteers.
  Image Statistics Canada

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