From the Commander

I recently attended the funeral of a Post 1 member I had never met. That is not unusual. Most of our members served during the Vietnam era, and we also have a few Korean War veterans. Many are no longer comfortable driving at night or make it to our meetings. Over the past year, Post 1 has made a meaningful effort to ensure that members are present at services at Fort Snelling. Sometimes, our members double the number of people gathered to say goodbye. Recently, one family requested a private interment but warmly welcomed us to the funeral. The member was days shy of his 96th birthday, and the chapel was filled with people celebrating his life. At that age, many people have only a small circle left to attend their funeral, but this man was different. I was not familiar with the church’s denomination, yet it was clear that the congregation is deeply committed to serving the local community.

I want to share what I believe genuine commitment to one’s values can look like. This member and his wife left what sounded like a beautiful home on Lake Minnetonka and moved to Minneapolis’s Phillips neighborhood—a very different setting—so they could better serve their church community. They had lived there for 25 years at the time of his death. At the funeral, many photographs of him were displayed, and in every one, he was smiling. He had clearly found a path to joy and happiness, much of it through service to others. Isn’t that what we all hope for—a life filled with joy and purpose? Don’t we all hope to leave behind the kind of legacy this man did?

I participate in the American Legion because I feel a deep responsibility to contribute to my community. I am sure many of our members share that same sense of service. I believe our time serving together in the military instilled in us a desire to keep giving—a desire that continues to bring us joy. When Post 1 takes on a service project, such as scrubbing headstones at Pioneer and Soldiers Cemetery, the work is hardly glamorous. Yet I have met some of my closest Legion friends while doing it, and we found genuine enjoyment in working side by side. Restoring a sense of dignity and reverence to those worn markers brought each of us joy, as did simply being together. I am challenging myself to follow the example of the member we lost: to be remembered with a smile on my face, serving others and finding joy in the process.