Rumours about the demise of the Slovak Legion in Thunder Bay have been bad for business, the organization’s president says.

Robin Stejskal said the rumours are false and the legion is indeed open for business.

“We are having a lot of people phoning us,” he said. “It's gotten out of hand to the point [where] we are having to concentrate more of the work on [saying] 'no this is not true' … ‘we are open as usual'.”

'We are here to stay ...'—Legion president Robin Stejskal

Stejskal acknowledged January and February are generally slower times for the legion and it’s trying to get more people through the doors by providing different types of services.

“What’s happening with every legion is everyone is suffering due to the memberships aging,” he said.

“But in the last two years, there is no cap on the membership. You don't have to have a war number to join. But the general public believes the legions are only for military families."

Stejskal added the Slovak Legion is a place where many have celebrated life events and organizations have hosted everything from conferences and committee meetings to Christmas parties.

"We are here to stay and will continue to serve Thunder Bay and area well into the future,” he said.

“Our bar/restaurant is picking up quite nicely. The catering aspect is booked. The rumours … we just would like [them] to stop.”