By Elena Rennie
The Georgina Military Museum welcomed hundreds of visitors for its Annual Georgina Military Day on Saturday, June 20, 2026, celebrating local military history through vendors, reenactments, and community engagement.
The annual event brought together veterans, reenactors, volunteers, and families from York Region and beyond. According to Georgina Military Museum President, Jeff Leggett, Military Day continues to grow each year thanks to the dedication of volunteers and strong community support.
“We want Military Day to go from being an event that you want to go to, to an event that you’re afraid to miss.” Leggett said.
Leggett emphasized that the museum’s success is driven entirely by volunteers. “Everyone’s a volunteer, myself included,” he said. “It’s a group effort every single time.”
Founded in 2007, the museum focuses on preserving and sharing the stories of local service members. Leggett believes those stories are what make the museum unique.
“There were people for 100-plus years that were willing to sacrifice themselves for all of us,” he said. “Without us being able to tell that story, eventually it’s going to get forgotten.”
The museum highlights military connections within Georgina, including veterans from Sutton and Chippewas of Georgina Island First Nation. Leggett said helping visitors connect local names and faces to larger historical events is one of the museum’s most important roles.
“If we have a group of students come, and out of 20 students one child asks one question, then we’ve done our part,” he said. “That means it had an impact.”
Leggett also thanked everyone who attended the event, noting that Military Day is the museum’s largest fundraiser of the year.
“Without the people who come and support the museum, all our work goes to waste,” Leggett said. “They’re just as important.”
As the museum prepares to celebrate its 20th anniversary next year, volunteers are already looking at ways to make the milestone event even bigger.
To learn more or to make a donation, visit georginamilitarymuseum.ca.
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