N.S. legions worry poppy campaign will suffer under COVID-19 restrictions

Two Royal Canadian Legion representatives appearedbefore a legislativecommittee Tuesday tourgeprovincial politicians to do their part to boost poppy donations this year.

Pandemic restrictions mean legion volunteers will not be allowed into stores or mallsas usual next monthto solicit donations in exchange for poppies. Some stores will still allow donation boxes to be placed at entrances, but volunteers willnot be allowed to oversee them.

"We certainly do expect a drop in the generation of funds on a community level," Valerie Mitchell-Veinotte, executive director of the Royal Canadian Legion's Nova Scotia/Nunavut Command, told the legislature's veterans affairs committee.

"It is solely the poppy campaign funds that are raised that support veterans and their familiesand without that, the supports we're able to provide as a volunteer, not-for-profitcharitable organizationwill be greatly reduced."

$771K raised in N.S. last year

The poppy campaign is the legion's major fundraising effort. Last year,100 branchesacross Nova Scotia raised $771,000, withalmost all of thatgoing to support programs for former members of the Canadian Forcesor theRCMP.

Don McCumber, the command's poppy and remembrance chair, told provincial politicians that $736,000 went todirect grants forveterans and their families, including veteran transition programs and "youth programs that foster remembrance." Donations also go toward hospitals and facilities that care for veterans.

That kind of help would be in jeopardy if donations drop this year because of COVID-19 restrictions and the fact Remembrance Day celebrations are being curtailed.

When it comes to legion halls, Mitchell-Veinottetold CBCNews some may be forced to close as a result of declining revenue, but she declinedto guess how many. Most branches in Nova Scotia have a legion hall or other facility.

"Given the challenge to operate their buildings in the upcoming months, whereby utilities are likely to be more expensive ...the branches will absolutely face challenges in maintaining and operating their buildings," she said.

Mitchell-Veinotte also used the appearance before the committeeto bemoan"erratic" delays experienced by retired or discharged military veterans who applyfor benefits.

In some cases, Veterans Affairs Canada is processing files so slowly that veterans have to wait months sometimes years to get what they are due.

She told CBC Newsroutine cases were processed "relatively quickly," but she had one file awaiting a decision that dated back 2years.