Hutchinson takes a spin on the dance floor.

Leila Leeies and Cyril Hutchinson are now fast friends.

THE CONNECTION The Ontario Command of the Royal Canadian Legion has more than 400 branches and 160,000 members. Look up your local branch at legion.ca or email: info@legion.ca.

It's kind of an insiders' secret across Canada - the place where older folks have a bite to eat, hang out, meet old or make new friends, take a spin on the dance floor and maybe find romance on Saturday night.

If you're looking for love or maybe just new faces, the Royal Canadian Legion might be exactly the place for you.

Who can go? Do you have to be a member? There isn't a simple answer for that. The 1550 branches across the country are autonomous and make their own rules. A Hamilton, Ont. branch we called said non-members had to be accompanied by members. The one Etobicoke branch we visited simply let non-members in, unaccompanied by members, for a $5 fee. Your best bet is to call your local branch first or better yet, take out an annual membership for around $60.

Canadian statistics reflect a growing number of people living alone, including 35 per cent of women aged 65 and over. Since many 50-plus Canadians suddenly find themselves divorced or widowed and facing the dating scene once again, finding a sociable place to meet and mingle with people their own age can be a challenge.

June Trotter is a regular at the Friday night dinner/dances at Legion branch 240 in Surrey, B.C. Trotter not only attends the dances, she cooks the dinners. And one Wednesday per month she prepares a special Air Crew luncheon for World War II veterans. "They've made me an honorary Air Crew member. I'm the only woman," she boasts, adding that one of "her" Air Crew members met his live-in sweetheart at a Friday night dance.

Trotter says an average of 90 to 100 people - more women than men - attend the dinner/dances. But there are few wallflowers. Women dance with each other or in groups to a live band.

"Older women won't go into bars but they'll come into the Legion. They feel safe here," she says, explaining that regulars at the dances range in age from 19 to 90. "But 80 per cent are seniors. Actually, one woman is 100. She comes in and gets up and dances."

Dinner and dance is $12; dance only is $3. However, this event is for members only and their signed-in guests.

If you'd like to visit before becoming a member, Trotter says a member at the door will probably agree to sign you in so you can "see what we're all about. That's how we gain new members."

Ramsay Lewis, 82, and Diann Crawford, 63, met at one of the dances at Legion branch 210 in Etobicoke, Ont. Now, more than 10 years later, they're engaged.

Lewis says his romance with Crawford began with one dance and developed into an enduring relationship. He offered to take her home that first night but she was, initially, a bit reluctant.

"My friends knew him from the club and they said he was okay," she says. "He phoned me every night that week. Then we met the next week at the dance."

"She saved me a seat," quips Lewis.

And the rest is history.

When's the big day? Never. This couple plans to maintain the status quo. Anything beyond an engagement ring is just too complicated. "We can't agree on the division of stuff for the kids," says Crawford. "We each have a condo. This way, it gives us both our privacy but we spend weekends together."

Leila Leeies, 80, and Cyril Hutchinson, 87, have adopted the same credo. The two also met at the Legion and enjoy dancing and socializing. But when it comes to marriage, Leeies says she's "been there; done that" and doesn't want to repeat the experience. She and Hutchinson are content to coast in their separate-but-together living arrangement.

Since they were both attached to others when they first met, their romance developed from an established friendship. They both belonged to RCL and worked up slowly from a home-cooked meal at her place to a movie or two, ultimately building a permanent relationship on friendship and a mutual passion for dancing.

"I'm very much in love with him," says Leeies, glancing adoringly towards Hutchinson. "But I like my freedom."

Hutchinson is the Sergeant at Arms for Branch 210 and Leeies is the first vice-president. So they're invited to start the dancing each Friday and Saturday night. Two steps into the first dance and they're no longer alone on the dance floor.

At this Etobicoke branch, the eclectic mixture of music and dance styles includes everything from waltzes and disco to line dancing and the conga. And all this to a great assortment of tunes from the fifties, sixties and seventies.

Although the Friday and Saturday dances at branch 210 begin at 8 p.m., dancers often arrive early on Fridays to take advantage of the $7.50 fish and chip dinner, served between 6 and 7:30.

For more information, look up your local Royal Canadian Legion branch in the phone book or at legion.ca or email: info@legion.ca.