Royal Canadian Legion gives $80,000 to Okanagan College

Photo: Contributed

The Royal Canadian Legion has donated $80,000 from its Poppy Fund to help support Okanagan College’s new multidisciplinary Health Sciences Centre.

The state-of-the-art training facility for health care students opened in 2021 and is located at the college's Kelowna campus.

Royal Canadian Legion Branch 26 president Darlene McCaffery says she was extremely impressed with the advanced level of training that’s being provided.

“We believe in the power of education , and we’re proud to invest in the next generation of health care providers."

The new centre for health sciences will allow Okanagan College to educate more students in high-demand areas where already critical staffing shortages are expected to grow.

“We raise money through poppy sales to support veterans and their families. What better way to do that than by ensuring they have access to well trained health care professionals in their local communities,” continued McCaffery.

Okanagan College Foundation’s Our Students, Your Health campaign has been raising money since 2019, and with the support of community donors, the campaign has raised $4.5 million for the facility.