Varies from place to place, even within Regiments.
Here in Ottawa we Royal Canadians, all ranks â “ serving and retired, usually gather and, as a keystone event, wish ourselves a 'Happy Birthday' (a few more than our friends in the Patricias
) with the Ortona Toast.
The Ortona Toast originated on the Regimental Birthday in December 1944. The CO had gone up to take over the brigade and Strome Galloway was A/CO as the battalion prepared to enter Ortona. The A/Brigade Commander and a few others came to his Tac CP to watch the attack begin. Some hot rum was served there in the Tac CP, in plain white ceramic cups, and a Toast was propsed to 'celebrate' The Regiment's birthday. We repeat the Toast year-after-year, as a reminder of what our real business is. We, in Ottawa, were lucky in that for many, many years Strome Galloway himself proposed the Toast at our annual Birthday gatherings â “ just as he had in 1944.
A few years ago the 'custom' of the Ortona Toast was made
official throughout The Regiment.
There are, also, dinner nights, etc but for Royal Canadians the Regimental Birthday and Paardeberg Day 'flank' the holiday season and sometimes working up
enthusiasm for another 'evening out' or 'dining in' is a tad difficult.