49 | durhamregion.com | This Week | Thursday, November 24, 2022 | *Annual rate of return. Rate is subject to change without notice. ukrainiancu.com 800.461.0777 Promo code: DS1122 Take advantage of this great rate today! Earn 5.0%* interest for 20 monthS UCU - the Credit Union that helps you build a brighter financial future For new money transferred to UCU from other financial institutions Experience the wonder of a Christmas tree farm. Shop our rural markets, historic downtowns, and holiday festivals. Enter for a chance to win a $500 prize pack! www.claringtontourism.net Museum 178 has been around for a few years, since about 2008 and possibly before that, but it never had a name and it never had a logo and it never had a direction. Museum 178 is the museum of Royal Canadian Legion Branch 178, 109 King St. E., Bowmanville. We are refurbishing the museum -- striping the old wallpaper, filling the holes and dents, painting, putting in shelves and all those things that help a museum look pretty as well as interesting. Making it interesting comes next. Once the new cabinets were in place, we started to go through the collection and find articles that represent the museum's mandate: to collect, preserve and make available the history of the military service of Bowmanville and area people through not only the two world wars, but also the Korean conflict and today's peacekeeping missions. Visual items such as maps and photos will make up a good portion of the displays and, of course, examples of the uniforms of the three branches of our armed forces, as well as the Merchant Marine, which played an important role during all conflicts. Many people say we are glorifying war by displaying these items, but in actual fact we are trying to remember what our soldiers did to keep our country free from tyranny -- some even giving their young lives to do so. Now that's worth remembering. We won't forget today's members either -- so many are busy with their service to veterans and their families, and their activities will be recorded in the museum for future generations to learn from, and so displays of today's activities will also be found from time to time in our new museum. Museums are not static, never-changing places -- they grow with each new day and represent the community in which they are found. So, visit us often. Our hours will be 2 to 4 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays, and at other times by appointment. You will see three inter-locking rings in the museum logo. These represent the past, the present and the future. By knowing what our servicemen and women have done in the past, and what they are doing now, perhaps we won't have to face conflicts in the future. We will remember them. Sher Leetooze is the secretary at Bowmanville Legion Branch 178 and is working to get its museum up and running. CLARINGTON'S SERVICE MEMBERS WILL BE REMEMBERED OPINION COLUMNIST ON MUSEUM TAKING SHAPE AT BOWMANVILLE LEGION SHER LEETOOZE Column Some of the items that will be on display for the public to see at the Bowmanville legion's Museum 178. Sher Leetooze photo