BUFFALO, N.Y. — The U.S.-Canada border is set to reopen Monday to vaccinated Americans and Canadians living in the U.S. with a negative COVID-19 test.

What You Need To Know

  • The Canadian border is set to reopen Monday to fully vaccinated Americans and Canadians residing in the U.S.
  • For some people, this means a long-awaited reunion with their loved ones
  • In one man’s case, it’s the love of his life
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For some people, this reopening means a long-awaited reunion with loved ones. 

Merton LaBounty was just getting his life started with his girlfriend Tammy, who lives 30 minutes away in Fort Erie, before the world shut down.

“We were traveling back and forth from Lake George, and it was costing so much money I just decided to sell my company and move out here and start my own remodeling and building business," said LaBounty.

To stay busy while missing her, he’s been working as much as possible, but he found himself in a dark place over the winter when the stress and pain came to a head.

“All I could see was her on a computer and I got so angry it wasn’t like, real anymore,” he said. “Our relationship wasn’t real. It was all on a computer. And I got so upset I just smashed my computer, and that’s when I went and got help.

“It’s been awful hard on me being out here by myself, and I didn’t move out here to be alone. I moved out here to start a life with Tammy.”

For the past year and half, LaBounty has come to expect the border reopening date to be pushed back, so he is not getting his hopes up yet. Tammy was able to come to Buffalo via plane a few weeks ago, but that was for a short period of time.

He said he will wait until after Monday to go see her, and give traffic a chance to slow down at the border.