Saturday 03 September 2016 was the third iteration of the annual RMR Smoker reunion. First hosted in 2014 as part of the Centennial activities and to mark 100 years of successful service to Canada, the reunion was open to the entire Regimental Family, and a BBQ lunch was included in the admission.
The event was so successful that the serving battalion requested it to repeated in 2015 and again this year in 2016. This time the RMR Association, under the leadership of Comrade Sue Guerin, happily obliged, and now that the RMR has done it three years in a row it must be a tradition by now!
The RMR’s official birthday is 02 November, but in reality the first time that RMR troops formed up together on parade and referred to themselves as “The Royal Montreal Regiment” was in August 1914. So it was precisely 102 years ago that the RMR was getting organized and forming part of the Canadian Expeditionary Force taking shape in Valcartier.
On a beautiful sunny day this September, more than a hundred guests representing several generations of the RMR Family gathered together to mark the 102nd anniversary of the Regiment’s founding. Held at the picturesque Pointe Picard location of the Canadian Forces Sailing Association (CFSA), there was a short ceremony held at noon where both the Canadian flag and the RMR Camp Flag were hoisted.
Members of the RMR Association ran a BBQ where everyone got to enjoy hamburgers, sausages & hotdogs cooked to perfection over a charcoal grill, and the RMR’s Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel, LCol (ret’d) Colin Robinson, brought his smoker and smoked six big chunks of pork loin for everyone to enjoy.
The CFSA club members kindly volunteered to take visitors out on the lake for a tour in sail boats. There were canoes & kayaks available for use as well, and several visitors took advantage of the opportunity. There were activities for children, including a bouncy castle that proved to be very popular!
There were an awful lot of red caps of the RMR Association members present as more than 60 years of chronological service was represented by the RMR’s at the reunion, with one member having joined the Regiment in the early 1950’s, others having joined this year, and every point in between!
Special thanks to the Comrades from the RMR Association who helped so much to make it a great day for all who attended. Photos of the event can be downloaded from the RMR Association’s Facebook Page.
