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The Lorne Scots Regimental Association Newsletter May 2026
- Capt (Ret'd) Stewart Sherriff, CD
- May 3
- 9 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
The 1st of May – The beginning of the summer season!
Read on to see what has happened and will be happening in the next couple of months.
Fallen Comrades
Time is moving on and that means that we are all getting older. Sadly, it also means that we lose people that we know and served with.
Since the last newsletter, the Regimental Family has lost two more members.
Sergeant Brian Docherty passed away on 29 March at the age of 78.
Warrant Officer Edward “Ted” Partridge passed away on 31 March at the age of 79.
They will be missed. Rest in peace.
From the Regiment
By RHQ
Lieutenant Colonel Jason Kearney and Chief Warrant Officer Dmitri Iassinovski took over command of The Lorne Scots Regiment as the Commanding Officer and the Regimental Sergeant Major, respectively.
Second Lieutenant Sandhar was promoted on May 23, 2026. 2Lt Sandhar recently completed his Basic Military Officer Qualification – Army (BMOQ‑A) and Cold Weather Operator courses. He served as the Course Officer for a Basic Military Qualification course, with 43 members graduating this past winter, and actively serves as the PAT Platoon Commander for the Lorne Scots. 2Lt Sandhar has shown great progress and commitment while leading as a platoon commander and serving as a course officer after completing his BMQ in March 2025.
The Lorne Scots took part in Exercise INTREPID GUARD alongside the Governor General’s Horse Guards and successfully completed their C7 qualification shoot for the new Fiscal Year 2025–26. This exercise marked the first combined exercise for the newly formed partnership [Tactical Group] between the two regiments.
The Toronto Garrison Ball
For many years, the officers of the Regiment used the excuse that the dates of the Lorne Scots Easter Ball and the Toronto Garrison Ball conflicted as a reason for not going to the Garrison Ball.
In recent years, this has changed. Parties of officers and their guests have been reappearing at the Garrison Ball over the last few years. Apparently, they have been having a good time, as the numbers have been growing.
This year was another of those years.
Honorary Colonel Gary Love led 10 couples from the Regiment on 11 April to the Liberty Grand Entertainment Complex for a night of good food, good company, along with music and dancing.
Hosted this year by the Queens’ York Rangers, the Ball dates back to 1817, when the officers of the York Garrison gathered to celebrate the birthday of Queen Charlotte. Over the years, the Ball has become one of the social events of the year in Toronto. Attendees have the opportunity to meet with senior officers of the regular and Reserve Forces, politicians of all levels and captains of industry in a relaxed social setting while acknowledging the service of Canada’s soldiers.
Have a look through the photos from the Ball to see if you can spot all our attendees at https://torontogarrisonball.ca/photos
8th Annual Brampton Run for Veterans
The 8th Annual Brampton Run for Veterans was held at Chinguacousy Park on the morning of 18 April and was successful in many ways. Even the weather cooperated, holding off the rain until all the participants were either safely home or indoors at the Association Annual General meeting and keeping the temperature cool but not too cold.
Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown was joined by several members of Council, along with over 180 runners from the Lorne Scots, the Governor General’s Horse Guards, Peel Police and other First Responders, 557 Cadet Corps and the public, along with masses of supporters.
Organizer Henry Verschuren did a great job putting this year's run together, getting increases in the number of sponsors, teams and individual runners. He is now hard at work, settling all the bills, to come up with the bottom line numbers.
Our Tactical Group partners from the GGHG managed to win the team 5 K event on their first try [by technicality], so well done to them and we will see you next year for the rematch.
Another thing that also increased this year was the amount of social media coverage. If you are on Facebook, do a quick search for 8th annual run for veterans or Run for Veterans and see how many sites there were.
The Association Annual General Meeting
The AGM took place in the Brampton Armoury on the afternoon of 18 April, following the Run for Veterans.
A surprisingly large turnout of over 50 people were on hand for the festivities. The fact that it wasn’t an election year and there was free food before the meeting might have had something to do with the turnout.
The Association continues to be in overall good shape.
President Ross Welsh talked about the need for feedback to the Executive, especially about ideas for things that the membership is interested in doing.
He also talked about the fact that the Association has funds set aside to help those who are struggling. The money has been there for quite a few years but nobody seems to know about it, as there haven’t been any requests for help.
If you need help, don’t be shy about asking for help.
The Association will help where it can and they will also work to find other helping organizations that can do more, especially in longer term programs and support.
Lieutenant Colonel Kearney, the Tactical Group Commander and CO of both the Horse Guards and the Lorne Scots, was able to attend the AGM and provided some more information about the Canadian Army Modernization plans. While a lot of the details about how things will be worked out are still to be confirmed, he did point out that the two units of the Tactical Group have a big challenge ahead. They have been given a goal of reaching a unit strength of 500 all ranks, each by 2030. These are the sort of numbers that haven’t been seen since the height of the Cold War in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s
You can find out more about the Army Modernization Plan online at
Canadian Army Senior Piping Instructor
For those who haven’t heard, our Pipe Major, WO Jeremy Federico has now gotten his official start date and has moved into his job as Senior Piping Instructor for the Canadian Forces at the School of Music in CFB Borden.
This position has been vacant for some time and so one of Jeremy’s first challenges has been to start standardizing the reference material. He says he has been tearing up and throwing out a lot of outdated material. He is also working to standardize the many varied references that individual units are using to teach with.
The Music Branch is moving away from teaching towards hiring those with proven ability, and another of his tasks will be grading audition tapes from those who want to join up. Before he gets too heavily into this, he is off to Halifax for a four-month summer teaching stint, so if you don’t see him for the next few months, that's where he is.
All the best in the new job, Jeremy and enjoy the Donairs in Halifax.
A piece of Brampton history is coming home
Pte John Stewart of the Brampton Infantry Company served from the 2nd to the 19th of June 1866 in Toronto, expecting an attack by the Fenian Brotherhood.
The Fenians were an Irish American group dedicated to obtaining the freedom of Ireland from England by holding Canada for ransom. A group of Fenians from Buffalo did capture Fort Erie on the 1st of June but retired back to the United States after an indecisive battle with Canadian Militia at Ridgeway on the 2nd.
In 1898, the Canadian Government authorized a medal for this service. Pte Stewart received his in 1900. One month shy of 126 years after the medal was issued, it is returning to Brampton.
Echo McCurley, of Lethbridge, Alberta, Pte Stewart’s grand niece, said in an April 22nd news release from Royal Canadian Legion General Stewart Br No 4 announcing the donation.
“BGen Stewart gifted me this medal for safekeeping. As the last living descendant, it is a privilege for me to ensure that this important military artifact finds its way back home to Brampton in the Lorne Scots Regimental Museum to honour his military service to Canada.”
Glenn Miller, a Director of the Organization of Military Museums of Canada and retired RCAF Warrant Officer, will be bringing the medal to Brampton for presentation to the Museum on the 1st of May weekend.
Volunteer Companies from both Halton and Peel served during the Fenian Raid. The Halton Companies and the Derry West Company served in the Niagara Peninsula and the remainder of the Peel Companies served in Toronto.
The performance of the Volunteer Companies during the Fenian Raid of 1866 was a major reason for the reorganization of the Militia in the summer of 1866 and the formation of the 36 and 20th Battalions in Sept.
The Museum is very grateful to Echo for the donation and to Glenn for his work in arranging the donation and transporting the medal to the Museum.
A first for the Museum
On the 1st of April, the Regimental Museum became the first institution in Canada to host the “Forget-us-not”, a travelling exhibit created by the Vimy Foundation and its museum branch, the Canadian Center for the Great War.
Through a display of artifacts and panels, the exhibit tells of Remembrance in Canada after the Great War.
The Museum became the first organization to display the exhibition through the good work of Mr. Ryan Goldsworthy, the Museum Director of Collections and Research, who is well-connected to the staff of the Vimy Foundation.
The exhibit will be at the Museum until May 26th and then it will be off to Halifax.
Do try to drop into the museum to see this exhibit before it leaves.
A Museum upgrade
The Regimental Museum is a registered heritage building. At the time of its construction, people didn’t worry about ease of access for those with disabilities and handicaps.
The City of Brampton is working on fixing that.
A construction project to bring the Museum into line with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) has begun. The City has created a plan to install an external ramp and an internal elevator to assist access for those with disabilities. The request for tender for the project has been issued.
The ramp will form a U shape on the front lawn, leading from the street level back to the stairs. Some work may have to be done on the front stairs to fit the ramp in, as required by the AODA. The elevator will mean having to move one stair rail by a few inches and lifting the glass framework above the left-hand stairwell to accommodate the elevator. This may require closing the Museum during the construction period.
A start date on construction hasn’t been announced, but the intention is to have the project completed by the start of Sept.
Military spouse and partner support group
By Mrs. Mackenzie Gandza
Hello, I’m Mackenzie Gandza, a military spouse in the GTA. Through my own experience, I recognized a gap in connection and support among military spouses and partners in our community. Operation Holdfast – Behind the Uniform is an emerging peer support initiative for military spouses and partners in the GTA, focused on building connection, resilience, and community.
With plans for monthly meet-ups and open conversations around independence, time apart, and shared experiences, the goal is to create a supportive space where military spouses and partners truly understand one another.
This initiative is not affiliated with the Canadian Armed Forces, and interested spouses and partners are encouraged to join and help shape this growing community—you don’t have to navigate this journey alone.
To learn more, email operationholdfastgta@gmail.com or connect with Mackenzie’s cell at 647-962-5281
Some good news to end with
The City of Brampton recognizes the efforts of its’ citizens to make Brampton a better place with its’ annual Citizen Awards.
While the official announcement hasn’t been made yet, a little bird has leaked the news that the Adult Citizen of the Year Award winner is our very own Scott Ching.
The award recognizes community building with passion, determination and all-around community involvement. Scott certainly meets these criteria.
Congratulations Scott!
Cadet Corps Annual Ceremonial Reviews
The Cadet Corps training years are winding down and the dates for Annual Ceremonial reviews are coming out.
557 Brampton – Sat 13 Jun at the Terry Miller Recreation Center at 09:30
676 Georgetown – Wed 27 May at the Col JR Barber Armoury at 18:00
1188 Oakville – Sat 13 Jun at Holy Trinity Catholic Secondary School at 13:00
1849 Orangeville – Wed 10 June at the Alder Street Recreation Centre at 18:45
2990 Milton - Sat 30 May at The Milton Sports Centre, 605 Santa Maria Blvd at 18:30
Do come out and show the Corps in your area your support.
Coming Events
How to contribute to the Newsletter
If you have a story about an upcoming event, want to pass on how an event went or something that may be of interest to the Regimental Family, please send a short write-up (100 – 150 words or so) with one or two good quality pictures to the Editor at stewart.sherriff3@gmail.com.
Please ensure that all people in any submitted pictures have agreed to have their images posted. The Association will assume that such permissions have been acquired before the picture was submitted.
The Association reserves the right to vet all submissions for appropriateness before posting. Items may not be deemed suitable for posting due to inappropriate language or content. Items submitted will be reviewed for factual accuracy and may be edited for length.
Any mistakes which may occur are entirely accidental, and no malice or harm is ever intended.
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