HEART OF STEELE

One of the last stories I did before moving from Michigan to Minnesota was about several fundraisers to save the 70-year-old home of the Groves-Walker American Legion Post.

COVID hit the Legion hard, as revenues from the bar/restaurant, bingo, and rentals completely dried up. I learned recently that their beautiful building has been sold, and the group will soon move into a more affordable rental space.

As I wrote about their struggles, I realized one of their biggest problems was that so few people knew what the Legion offered to veterans and the community–color guard at special events and funerals, disposal of worn American flags, temporary homes for everything from a winter farmers market to a weekly contra dance group.

Most importantly, though, the building was a home away from home for veterans whose war experiences can be hard for the rest of us to understand. The Legion also made sure older vets who couldn’t leave their homes had someone on their side, someone to keep them company.

Like so many people, I have always taken veterans groups for granted. Every place I’ve ever lived had an American Legion or a VFW. I’ve attended and covered events in Legion and VFW halls, sat in on meat raffles and bingo games and more solemn events, like last month’s Quilts of Valor ceremony at the Owatonna VFW.

Those places don’t exist in a vacuum, they require support from the community, whether it’s stopping by for a beer and burger or attending a special event.

The veterans’ groups in the heart of our community stand behind those whose service and sacrifice we remember on this Veterans Day. Let’s make sure we’re standing behind them.