EDMONTON - After reports that a group of cadets distributing Remembrance Day poppies were asked to leave Cabela's in North Edmonton on Saturday, the hunting and fishing supplies store is making amends with a $10,000 donation to the Royal Canadian Legion's Poppy Fund.

﻿"Knowing Cabela's long-standing commitment to supporting the Canadian Armed Forces and Royal Canadian Legion, I was deeply concerned when I learned of the misunderstanding that led to cadets planning to distribute Remembrance Day poppies being turned away from one of our stores," read a statement on Cabela's Facebook page and attributed to CEO Tommy Miller.

﻿"Of course, cadets are welcome to distribute poppies at our stores, just as they have done in the past, and to make up for the missed opportunity Cabela's will proudly contribute $10,000 to the Royal Canadian Legion's Poppy Fund."

According to Greg Laskey, a cadet liaison and poppy fund representative for the Royal Canadian Legion Norwood Branch, a group of cadets was invited to the Cabela's on Saturday by an employee who is said to be the father of one of the cadets.

When they arrived, management allegedly told the group to leave, saying the employee did not have the authority to invite them to the location.

"The management of Cabela's informed them that, no, they weren't welcome there," said Laskey, who called the snub "disappointing."

The cadets involved were dispatched to a new location.

The chain store's senior marketing manager, Cristen ﻿Cournoyer, said in an e-mail that this "was an unfortunate case of miscommunication on our part at our Edmonton North location." She noted that cadets were allowed to distribute poppies at another Cabela's location and they have placed poppies and donation collection boxes in both locations.

William Fecteau, a volunteer with the Edmonton Poppy Office who served with the Royal Canadian Air Force for 42 years, explained that the leaders of this cadet group did not contact the correct person before arriving at the store, likely catching the manager off guard.

"It's unfortunate that this happened because Cabela's is a proud supporter of the Royal Canadian Legion Poppy Fund," Fectuau said. "We get donations from them every year, and they put honour boxes in their stores for us every year."

In the written statement, Cournoyer added that Cabela's is hosting a hometown heroes event next week, where members of the military, firefighters, police officers and paramedics can receive an employee discount to "thank them for their service."

"﻿Again, on behalf of myself and Cabela Canada's more than 1,600 employees, I deeply apologize for this unintentional mistake and thank everyone for their understanding and continued support," Miller said.