BA Veterans Center assists 4,000 in 2024

Four years ago, the city honored its promise to five veteran organizations with the opening of a new 4,600-square-foot Veterans Center at 1117 S. Main St.

The promise came following the condemnation of the rundown prefab building that was serving as the Broken Arrow VFW Post, while other Veterans' organizations operated from various locations throughout the city.

As part of the 2018 Build Our Future BA General Obligation Bond, Broken Arrow voters approved $2 million for a new Broken Arrow Veterans Center that would serve as a home to five organizations benefiting area servicemembers.

Offices for the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, the Vietnam Veterans of America, the Military Order of the Purple Heart, and the Blue Star Mothers - Broken Arrow, Chapter 5 are all located at the facility. In addition to the offices, the facility also has meeting space and a catering kitchen.

This Broken Arrow Veterans Center facility enabled these organizations to assist approximately 2,000 veterans who visited the center in 2024. The Broken Arrow Blue Star Mothers also sent more than 2,000 care packages to active-duty military service members worldwide last year.

"The vision of the Broken Arrow Veterans Center is to provide active-duty veterans and their families with a trusted and accessible space for support, camaraderie, and guidance while honoring their service through continued advocacy and community connection," said Veterans Center Board of Directors Chair Bryan Bandy.

The Broken Arrow Veterans Center is a welcoming and inclusive environment where veterans can access a comprehensive range of services and resources from multiple veteran service organizations under one roof.

While Bandy calls the facility "fantastic", he says, "It's alive, it's vibrant, it's busy, and we don't have enough room."

Expansion of the Veterans Center is one of the city's facilities projects under consideration for inclusion in the 2026 General Obligation Bond package.

Bandy says many of the veteran organizations have more than 60 people at their meetings and more would attend if additional space were available.

"What we really need is to expand this building to be larger, and another issue we have is a lack of parking," Bandy said. "A lot of veterans, especially the older ones, are disabled, and so we need more handicapped parking spaces, which would come with an expanded parking lot."

Bandy volunteers his time at the Veterans Center. And speaking from his own personal experience, he reflects on the help he received at the Broken Arrow Veterans Center.

"Places like this help me, I'm a disabled combat veteran," Bandy said. "And a lot of the assistance that I got filing my claims was through veteran service officers, including one of the ones that works in this building now."

He says there is often a misunderstanding among younger veterans about veterans' organizations.

"A lot of them just don't understand or see what the benefits of the veterans' organizations are or what they do," Bandy said. "You know, there is a common misconception that VFW or American Legions are bars, and that it is just a bunch of old people hanging around, and that it smells like smoke, but that is really not what it is, especially here in Broken Arrow. This is a veterans center where you can come and meet, work together, and be around like-minded people."

Regarding the upcoming General Obligation Bond election, Bandy encourages everyone to vote on April 7, 2026, because he believes local issues significantly impact citizens' daily lives.

"When you come out and vote, it shapes the priorities for the city," Bandy said. "If you have a low turnout, it means fewer people get to decide what's important...I would encourage everybody to get out and vote. Put your opinion in the poll."

For more information about services and programming, go to the Broken Arrow Veterans Center website.