Eugene Kushnir has been a reserve officer with the Cadet Instructors Cadre of the Canadian Armed Forces for 26 years. Eugene has made it his mission to support The Royal Canadian Legion through his involvement with the cadet program. He ensured the participation of and supervised cadets while they participated in commemorative ceremonies and in the Poppy Campaign. Each year, he has had up to 200+ cadets participate in the Poppy Campaign, helping to ensure the Legion branch meets or exceeds its fundraising goals.
Eugene has ensured the cadets played a regular role in the life of Veterans. He worked with various Legions to provide cadets to help with fundraising dinners, award dinners, parades and in Remembrance Day events. He also arranged for cadet bands, buglers and pipers to participate in commemorative ceremonies and to provide entertainment to the Veterans and guests at the receptions after the ceremonies.
Eugene was member of the Royal Canadian Air Force Association 783 Wing in Calgary, and assisted in organizing the Battle of Britain and Remembrance Day ceremonies in Calgary. He is currently a member of 700 Wing in Edmonton.
For several years, Eugene also organized a competition between air cadet bands to select the best trumpeter and piper to participate in the events organized by 783 Wing. For Remembrance Day 2019, Eugene organized an Air Cadet band of over 100 cadets by combining the forces of four cadet bands. The band made a lasting impression on participants and there are plans to replicate this initiative in the future.
Additionally, Eugene has forged a relationship with the Carewest Colonel Belcher Veterans’ long term care home in Calgary. He arranged for cadets to entertain the Veterans with Christmas music and carols. He arranged a tree planting at the long term care facility in commemoration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee and has organized cadets to support Remembrance Day ceremonies so the residents can participate with their families.
Eugene was also a Director at Large for the Canadian Walk for Veterans, which was founded in 2018 with the goals of providing Canadians an opportunity to learn about the challenges of coping with life after service and also to raise money for Veterans organizations and causes. Eugene implemented cost reducing initiatives in order to maximize the donations to Veterans’ organizations and causes. Since becoming the co-organizer for Calgary in 2022, Eugene leveraged his volunteers from the Order of St. George to augment his team and continue to grow the walk, bringing awareness and recognition to Veterans and increasing donations.