After closing more than two years ago, the doors to the Veterans Affairs office in Kelowna will be reopening this November.
WATCH: Veterans Affairs to re-open Kelowna office
Canada’s Veterans Affairs Minister made it official Tuesday morning.
“We’re going to be opening up the office November 1 to allow front-line work to be done for our veterans and their families,” said minister Kent Hehr. “There’s 3,500 veterans and their families who live in this catchment area.”
“We have an obligation because of what they’ve done for this country to be able to be there for them when they return.”
READ MORE: Veterans Affairs offices to reopen within a year: Hehr
Some local veterans told Global Okanagan the move was long overdue.
“I had no power,” said Kelowna veteran Al Defoy.
“Now I can come back, meet someone face-to-face rather than write letters and get letters back that have all kinds of excuses but no results.”
The closures sparked outrage all across Canada.
READ MORE: Ex-soldiers protest Veterans Affairs office closures
While nine offices shut their doors, some services were shifted to Service Canada locations.
Conservative MP Dan Albas said his governments decision to close the offices and move to Service Canada locations actually made the services more accessible and convenient to veterans across Canada, along with saving taxpayers money.
“To me it makes sense when it you look at the big picture. It redirected more money to veterans,” said Albas. “It made it efficient I believe.”
In Kelowna, if veterans wanted help from an official Veterans Affairs office, the closest one was in Penticton.
The Kelowna office will now reopen in the same location on Queensway Avenue.
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