Legion to open branch at UBC

VANCOUVER • The Royal Canadian Legion has been shrinking across Canada. At its peak in 1984, the Legion had 602,500 members; today it's about 260,000.

But you can add another 30 names to that list, because in August, a new Legion branch was granted a charter at the University of B.C.

Because of COVID-19, the new branch hasn't had any actual events to date. The branch is also without its own space — it currently shares an address with the Institute for Veterans Education and Training (IVET) on UBC's Main Mall.

But Eric Liow feels there is a real need for a campus Legion, because many vets are going back to school.

“Back in 2017 the Government of Canada announced an investment in veterans education and training,” he explains. “That's a $133.9-million support (over six years) for veterans' transition. Eligible veterans have access to $40,000-to$80,000 to support post-military training, education and professional development.”

Still, going back to school isn't always easy for a vet.

“It's easy to give people money and tell them to do schooling, but if you think of a regular average military member, they may be a little older,” said Liow. “Now they're kind of being forced to adapt to a learning environment that, for some of them, they've been out of since high school. Having a Legion (branch) upholds some of the mission statements of the Royal Canadian Legion, which is to create a community.

“It's an opportunity for some of these veterans who will be on campus to at least fall back onto what they're familiar with, a Legion that many have frequented in the past. This is one that's closer to home, on campus, so they can connect with people that are alike.”

The 33-year-old Liow works with the Vancouver Coastal Health research institute. But he's also currently serving with the 39th Signals Regiment as part of Canada's primary reserve.

“Primary reserve force members support the national defence through part-time effort, often one evening per week and one monthly exercise,” he relates. “Oftentimes we go on summer training or summer deployment for national domestic response (such as) forest fires and floods. We were part of the COVID-19 response.”

He has a long history at UBC, having earned his BSc and master's degree in pharmaceutical sciences there. Post-graduation he worked at the Faculty of Medicine.

Being at UBC, and being in the reserve force since 2013, he saw the need for a Legion on campus to help vets make the transition. He hopes that the UBC branch can become a template for other university Legions across Canada.

The fledgling branch has set up a GoFundMe page to solicit donations for a “soldiers-to-scholars” fund that will provide an endowment and bursary scholarships for vets.