Membership card - The Canadian Legion of the British Empire Service League, British Columbia Command - ____ 72nd "Seaforths C.A.S.F". K52802 Private John HYRA served in the Seaforth Highlanders of Canada from 29 September 1939 to 28 December 1943 when he was wounded at Ortona, Italy. He received a gun shot to right shoulder. In Canada, several veterans' organizations emerged during World War I. The Great War Veterans Association, founded in 1917, was the first national organization for veterans, and by 1919 it was the largest veterans' organization in Canada. Following World War I, 15 different organizations existed to aid returning veterans in Canada. Field Marshal Earl Haig, founder of the British Empire Service League (now known as the Royal Commonwealth Ex-Services League), visited Canada in 1925 and urged the organizations to merge. In the same year, the Dominion Veterans Alliance was created to unite these organizations. In November 1925, the Canadian Legion was founded in Winnipeg, Manitoba, as the Canadian Legion of the British Empire Services League. The Canadian Legion of the British Empire Services League was incorporated by a special act of parliament the following year. The Legion grew steadily through the 1930s and then expanded rapidly following World War II. In 1960, Queen Elizabeth II granted the Legion royal patronage and it became the Royal Canadian Legion.