A.N.A.F. Unit #284 {Steveston} B.C.

        ARMY                    NAVY                  AIR  FORCE      

In early 1946, thirty veterans from the Steveston area approached the Army, Navy & Air Force Veterans in Canada, seeking a Charter to open their own Veterans club.

The Charter was granted and Army, Navy & Air Force, Unit #284 (Steveston) came into being.

The first club room was located above the Victory Cafe, a little fish and chip shop at 2nd Avenue and Moncton St.  It wasn't much, but it was a start.  In 1947 we bought the old Japanese Fisherman's Hospital and converted it into a licensed club. The hospital was located on the site of our current club.

In those days, with the exception of the Branch #5 Legion, it was the only licensed premises in Richmond so there was never a lack of new members or customers.

We had a donated billiards table, a reading room, and a poker room and on Saturdays we were always full.  In spite of large crowds and good sales, the club was always on the verge of bankruptcy because for the most part we lacked proper business skills and the integrity of some of our managers left much to be desired.

It was not uncommon in our infancy to arrive at the club at opening time and find it locked; which usually meant that the last manager had left the night before along with the cash; never to be seen again!!

Somehow we survived and in 1956 things looked a little brighter. We ended up with an honest manager and had a new waiter named Sparky Drombolis. We were sponsoring Little League teams and we showed a reasonable profit.

However, just as things improved, a golden glow appeared in the skies over Steveston on the night of December 29, 1956. This bright glow was not a UFO but was actually the club burning to the ground. The membership and Ladies Auxiliary pitched in and kept the Charter alive by holding meetings wherever we could find a spot, whether it be at a members home or at the old Steva Theatre.  But no matter where we were the main objective prevailed..... BUILD A NEW CLUB !!

It took from 1956 to 1959 to convince other Units and Command to lend us $8,100.  We took those funds and added it to the $4,100 we raised by selling debentures to existing members. We added these funds to the fire insurance money and began constructing our new club that opened December 10th, 1959; almost 3 years after the fire.

Our first manager in the new club was Jack McLean who had managed the White Rock Unit and we also appointed Sparky Drombolis as our Chief Steward. 

These two were our total staff upon re-opening and as well as drawing and serving the beer, they also did the janitorial work and anything else that was needed to keep the club running.

A year later, Jack asked for a leave of absence for what was said to be a bad heart condition and Sparky was appointed acting manager. Unfortunately for Jack, a brewery rep dropped in to the club and remarked on what a fine job Jack was doing as manager of the Bowser Hotel on Vancouver Island. This may have been one of the luckier days for us because after we fired Jack on February 5th, 1962; we hired Sparky Drombolis as our new manager.

Things took off on a positive note; credit ratings improved, loans from the other Units got repaid, and we were once again "Masters of Our Own Destiny" thanks in large part to our new manager.  We now had a first rate manager, dedicated staff, and a much wiser Executive Committee and membership.

We increased our sponsorship in juvenile sports teams and pitched in to help such groups as the Heart Fund, Cancer Society, Red Cross, Salvation Army, Boy Scouts and Girl Guides, Navy League and other Cadet organizations, as well as many other non-profit organizations.

During the 1960's and 1970's we, together with other Units of B.C. Command, turned our attention to the building of Senior Citizens Homes in our area.

One of our Steveston members, Bill White, began fund raising by holding car raffles and in two years raised a net profit of $23,000 and then with the advent of the Winsday and Provincial lotteries, raised an additonal $70,000.  Our first two seniors facilities were built in North Vancouver followed by our Steveston Home and then a high-rise facility in Vancouver, a total of 198 senior's suites.

We still support Senior Citizens Homes financially and have also donated large sums of money to organizations such as the Terry Fox fund, the George Derby Hospital, the Variety Club Telethon, the Richmond General Hospital, the Steveston Community Centre, job training for mentally challenged, the Japanese Language School, Rosewood Manor of the Richmond Intermediate Care Society, and many other worthwhile organizations.

All of these monies come from the sale of provincial lottery tickets, from the profits of weekly meat-draws, and from our bar sales

It is only by the continued support of our members and guests that we are able to do these wonderful and worthwhile projects.

To our members and your guests who support us we say.....

"THANKS  A  MILLION" !!