Editorial

As Remembrance Day approaches and we recall and commemorate the sacrifices of those who died while serving, we should also be reminded that one of the costs of war is the loss of what those ill-fated men and women—more than 100,000 in the two world wars—could have accomplished if they had lived on in peacetime. The article “Last soldier standing” on page 18 profiles the last surviving veteran of each war in which Canada fought—from the War of 1812 to the First World War. One lived to the age of 100 and had a lengthy postwar career as an admiral. Another ran an oil business, got his pilot’s licence at 65 and high-school diploma at 95, and wrote his autobiography at 100. Thousands of Second World War and Korean War veterans live on. Many have had postwar lives that, one way or another, e...

The use of service dogs to help veterans with mental-health issues is stalled with a lack of recognized standards for training both the dogs and the veterans who receive them. Originally the federal government had approached the Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB)—an arm of Public Services and Procurement Canada—to develop standards for service dogs. After consulting widely with economic, regulatory, procurement, health, safety and environmental experts, the board released draft standards in a 60-page document for further consultation. This generated an estimated 1,000 pages of comments, many of which were negative. As a result, CGSB decided in April 2018 not to proceed further. Veterans Affairs Canada then suggested standards could be developed by the department. There already was...

HomeEquity Bank has joined The Royal Canadian Legion Member Benefits Package (MBP), which means more variety and choice for members and their families. HomeEquity Bank, provider of the CHIP Reverse Mortgage, is a federally regulated Canadian bank that allows Canadian homeowners who are 55 or over to access up to 55 percent of the value of their home tax-free by tapping into that equity while still owning the home and living there. Through this partnership, HomeEquity Bank provides special benefits to Legion members and their families. Like many Canadians, you may be concerned about carrying debt into your retirement years, or wondering whether your savings will stretch far enough. HomeEquity Bank empowers Canadians 55-plus by offering an option that allows them to finance their retire...