Our Branch Service Officer is here to help you

 Veteran Support and Services Need help? That’s what the Legion was built to do. The Legion’s Veteran support services has been a pillar of the organization since it was founded in 1926. Our services are offered free of charge to all Veterans and their families regardless of whether or not they are members of the Legion. Generally speaking, we offer two avenues of assistance: Assistance with Disability Claims through Veterans Affairs Canada (VAC) The Legion’s Branch Service Officer have training in the disability claims process. The Branch Service Officer can offer advice to any Veteran seeking benefits through Veterans Affairs Canada. Each year, our Provincial Command Service officers submit nearly 200 applications for disability benefits to VAC on behalf of Veterans and their families. If you or someone you know needs guidance or assistance in accessing disability benefits through Veterans Affairs Canada, please contact a Branch or Command Service Officer. Alternatively, you can speak with a Service Officer at your local Legion branch for a referral to a Command Service Officer.  

 Approximately 18 million poppies are distributed by Legionnaires, Veterans, and Cadets across the nation annually. The proceeds are placed in trust to be used in support of Veterans and their dependents. Through these Poppy Fund donations, the Legion provides emergency financial assistance to Veterans and their families who are in distress. 

Who is eligible to apply? 

• Any person who is serving or who has served in the Canadian Armed Forces, RCMP and their dependents.

 • Merchant Navy personnel who have been awarded campaign stars or decorations and their dependents.

 • Ex-service personnel of Commonwealth countries and their dependents who are resident in Canada; and • Ex-service personnel of allied countries and their dependents who are resident in Canada.

 How can I apply? • Contact your local Branch Service Officer  

We provide a Poppy Service or Maple Leaf Service for deceased Members of Courtenay Legion free of charge. 

The Last Post Fund delivers the Veterans Affairs Canada Funeral and Burial Program. This program provides funeral, burial and grave marking benefits for eligible Canadian and Allied Veterans. Its mission is to ensure that all Veterans receive a dignified funeral and burial, as well as a military gravestone. 

The Last Post Fund also supports other initiatives designed to honour the memory of Canadian and Allied Veterans. It owns and manages the National Field of Honour, a military cemetery, and the Unmarked Grave Program provides military headstones and inscriptions for unmarked Veterans’ graves.

For more information on the above, please contact your local Branch Service Officer.