Leave it to the legion to stop a war — or at least, a skirmish over court time between Caledonia’s tennis and pickleball players.

“They were having some trouble at Kin Park,” said Ron Winegard from the Royal Canadian Legion Caledonia Branch 154.

“The pickleball players and the tennis players were having some arguments.”

As racquet-toting residents jostled for space on the two tennis courts in Kinsmen Park, the need for more pickleball courts in Caledonia came up at seemingly every community meeting.

Winegard, a Caledonia businessperson with a long track record of fundraising for recreational facilities, approached legion past president Brian Haggith in the spring of 2024 about collecting donations to build a four-court pickleball complex in McKinnon Park to meet the growing demand.

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