A visit to American Legion Post 413 by the men and women at the Silver Bay Veterans’ Home has become a fall tradition. Veterans enjoy lunch and catching up with friends and family. Veteran Larry Peterson (left) visits with his wife Margaret and Legion member Mike Backlund. The Post 413 Legion Auxiliary helped serve lunch and also enjoyed seeing the vets.
Sen. Al Franken has announced a new initiative to recruit Minnesota war veterans to take part in the national “Veterans History Project” to collect and preserve their personal accounts so that future generations may hear directly from them and better understand the realities of war.
Franken is promoting the effort to ensure that the voices of as many Minnesota war veterans as possible are part of the national Veterans History Project archives being collected by the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. The archives are available to everyone, including veterans and their families, as well as students studying American history and academic scholars researching American war efforts.
“Minnesotans have always proudly served our nation during times of war and we need to recognize those sacrifices and preserve their stories,” Franken said. “To do that, my office is partnering with the Library of Congress on Veterans History Project to archive the accounts of Minnesota war veterans so that future generations understand their sacrifices. I’ll be working with Minnesota veterans groups and advocates, as well as with schools across the state to encourage veterans and their families to tell their stories.”
In the coming months, Franken’s office — in conjunction with Minnesota veterans groups and advocates — will continue to recruit war veterans to tell their stories for the archive. They will also help train Minnesotans who want to interview veterans and collect letters, diaries, photos and other things that can be added to the archive.
For more information or to participate in the Veterans History Project, contact Franken’s Veterans Advocate, Alex Schueller, at (651) 221-1016.
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