West Shore kids write more than 1,000 valentines for veterans

A record number of young people penned their appreciation and love for veterans with valentine cards this year.

For the past two years, the Royal Canadian Legion in Langford has organized the Valentines for Veterans giving West Shore schools the opportunity for students to write their respects for vets.

"Giving them an opportunity to say thank you and honour veterans is really important," said Gerry Brennan, youth coordinator at the legion.

The number of valentine cards from the Langford Legion for the February event topped the numbers from last year's, exceeding 1,000. More than 10 schools and 40 teachers offered to provide time for their students to complete cards for the project. The 848 Royal Roads Canadian Air Cadet Squadron also participated this year.

"Thanks goes out to all participants who helped make this project a tremendous success this year," Brennan said.

After the valentines are written – often including a personal message a riddle, or a thank you for current or past service – they are reviewed, organized, prepared for distribution and delivered by volunteers. Deployed troops, local military service members, West Shore veterans, RCMP members and local firefighters are the main recipients.