Post Talk
NORTH BRANCH POST # 85
By Glenn Pierce, Adjutant

Membership Meeting June 8th 7 PM
Auxiliary Meeting June 8th 7:30 PM
SAL Meeting June 15th 6 PM

Rick Hals, Commander – Greetings to all. Midsummer is fast approaching and Carene has everything under control, she has 4 bands lined up and the tent has been ordered. Glenn has the gaming taken care of for under the tent (I hear he went purse shopping also). WE are in need of help starting on Monday the 14th to bring everything from storage about 8 AM. Wednesday the 16th we have to barrels to set up the tent. we will need help on Friday and Saturday nights with the gates and change runners. Monday, we get to take it all down and back to storage, actually all this on any one the days does not take more than 2 hours. By the time you will receive the Post Talk, Memorial Day will be behind us so I want to thank everyone who help with put it. The last thing I will mention is the upcoming meeting on June 8th. We are going to have a presentation on the Veterans Memorial a movie/slide presentation will be given by the North Branch Beautification group, I encourage everyone to come learn how it has progressed also there will be chance for everyone to talk about the 2 locations that are being discussed and take an informal vote on the locations. See you at 7 PM Monday June 8th.

Michelle Still, Auxiliary President – Again, it was a privilege to honor our veterans at six local cemeteries. Now it’s time to gear up for Midsummer!

Here is another great event that we can all participate in. We will have a team again this year for Relay for Life. The event is August 18th and it’s being held at the Chisago Lake Lutheran Church. If you are interested in joining us, please contact me at 651-295-7260.

Randy Koivisto, First Vice Commander – Our recent blood drive collected 30 units of blood, with the potential of saving 90 lives. All appointments were filled prior to the event. Be sure to get your reservation in early if you want to participate in our next drive to be held on August 20th, from 9am to 3pm. Thanks donors!

We had a crew installing the avenue of flags at our North Branch cemeteries on Friday, May 28th, in time for the holiday observance of Memorial Day. By the time you read this, they will have been taken down, but keep it in mind for next year. It’s an impressive sight when all of those flags are flying in the breeze!

Our newly minted 1st Vice-Commander, Mark Johnson, will be taking over membership duties starting in July. Many thanks to Mark for stepping up!

Glenn Pierce, Adjutant – The Minnesota Department of Revenue reminds Minnesota service members to take advantage of the refundable 2017 Credit for Military Service in a Combat Zone. The 2017 credit expires for most qualifying service members on October 15, 2021. You may qualify for $120 per month or partial month served. Service members have already claimed more than $705,000 in refunds for the 2017 credit, with an average refund of $664.

“Minnesota provides this important benefit for our military service members who served in a combat zone,” said Revenue Commissioner Robert Doty. “Minnesota service members earned this credit through their service. We want to do all we can to make sure they are aware of this benefit.”

Do I qualify for the credit?

You may qualify if all of these are true:

You served in a combat zone or qualified hazardous duty area anytime since January 1, 2017. For details about combat zones and qualified hazardous duty areas, visit the IRS’s webpage on Combat Zones Approved for Tax Benefits.
You were a Minnesota resident during your time of service.
You received combat pay.

How do I claim the credit?

Submit Form M99 online, or mail Form M99, Credit for Military Service in a Combat Zone, for the years your served. For copies of Form M99, review our current and prior year forms. You will need these documents to file:

Corresponding Form DD-214 for each period of qualifying service
Leave and Earnings statements for each month of qualifying service

If you are filing a 2017 Form M99 by mail, your documents must be postmarked by October 15, 2021.

Can I claim the credit for other years?

You may also claim this credit for tax years 2018, 2019, and 2020. To apply for these credits, file Form M99 for the appropriate year.

Where can I find more information?

For details on this credit, review our Credit for Military Service in a Combat Zone page
For details on Minnesota’s other military tax benefits, review our Military Service Members page

Post Talk
NORTH BRANCH POST # 85
By Glenn Pierce, Adjutant

Membership Meeting May 11th 7 PM
Auxiliary Meeting May 11th 7:30 PM
SAL Meeting May 17th 6 PM

Michelle Still, Auxiliary President – I have been preparing reports for the district level and it amazes me how much our auxiliary members contribute to aid our veterans and military. This past year was tough for our unit to do everything we would have liked to. Nevertheless, we were able to honor our veterans with cards and gifts, support our community with gifts, and show appreciation for our military. Volunteers make a difference! Your membership is important! If you have not renewed your membership yet, you may do so by mailing your dues to Mary Lewis, P O Box 285, North Branch.

Randy Koivisto, First Vice Commander

Red Cross Blood Drive – Our quarterly Red Cross Blood drive will be held on Friday, May 21st, from 10-4. Most appointments are already filled, but you can apply to donate at RedCrossBlood.org and enter Sponsor Code: North Branch. You can also call 1-800-733-2767 to reserve an appointment.

Scholarships – Post 85 will be awarding five $1,000 this month to a group of outstanding North Branch Seniors. Having to choose from so many outstanding applicants is a tough job, but with our committee of Jim Johnson, Ron Rollins, and myself, did manage to pull it off.

Elevator – Our elevator work is nearing completion. Some bad door rollers were causing problems with delayed signals resulting in slow operation. The project should be complete in the next few weeks.

Maintenance – Our floors in the hall and meeting room received a couple coats of wax, so we are looking good once again. Facilities manager Carene Johnson has scheduled a company to come in to straighten out our array of electronic devices. We currently have some systems in the hall that are difficult to use, among other issues.

Orv Otterness – Check out the pin display in the hall that recently deceased member, and past 3 time commander, Orv Otterness, had collected over 65 years of being a member.

Art – We are still looking to add artwork to our exterior wall that faces the parking lot. It’s a big canvas, so volunteers for that project are needed.

Monthly Meetings – Monthly meetings are starting to grow in size again. We are meeting back upstairs in the meeting room at 7pm on the second Tuesday of the month, with masks on. Come on in!

Glenn Pierce, Adjutant – We will be resuming our traditional Memorial Day honors at 6 local cemeteries this year. Our scheduled start times will be as follows on Memorial Day, May 31, 2021:

Kost Cemetery 8:00 AM
Salem Lutheran Cemetery 9:10 AM
West Oxford Cemetery 9:10 AM
St John’s / Weber Cemetery 10:00 AM
Spring Lake Lutheran Cemetery 10:30 AM
St Gregory’s Catholic Cemetery 11:30 AM

We are continuing to work at having our traditional Midsummer Days Celebration this year. The Carnival is booked and ready, we have several bands and other parade entertainment waiting for restrictions to be lifted so they can attend. We are working with the State and Local authorities to bring you a safe and festive celebration.

Post Talk
NORTH BRANCH POST # 85
By Glenn Pierce, Adjutant

Membership Meeting March 9th 6 PM
Auxiliary Meeting March 9th 7 PM
SAL Meeting March 16th 6 PM

Rick Hals, Commander – Greetings to all and I hope this post talk finds you in good health. This months meeting will be at 6 PM on March 9th, and will be opening the meeting and then have the awards ceremony followed by a dinner and then resume with the meeting. Several members have asked how the post is doing in these strange and difficult times. I can report that the bar has been steadily improving, not to fast but on the right track. Carene, our manager has been on top of our income and expenses. The gaming is doing well, especially with both bingo pots maxed out at $2000 each. We are still going ahead with all our Midsummer planning, of course that could change anytime with another up swing of Covid 19. I look forward to seeing everyone on March 9th.

Michelle Still, Auxiliary President – The American Legion Auxiliary has a great program for junior members! They are taught to serve our veterans, military and their families through mentorship from the auxiliary. Junior members hold their own convention, fun events and have a patch program. Daughters and granddaughters of American Legion members from birth to 17 years are eligible. Applications can be found at the Legion Hall or by contacting me at 651-295-7260. I would love to share about these amazing young people.

Randy Koivisto, 1st Vice Commander – It’s time once again to recognize those Legion members that have achieved significant
milestones regarding their American Legion membership. The annual awards program was delayed this year due to the pandemic. We feel that the conditions now allow us to proceed. Unfortunately we will be unable to invite the VFW, community contributors, and staff, to join us due to the hall capacity dictated by the social distancing rules. Mask use will be required when not eating or drinking.
We will be honoring those members that have reached their 10,20,25,30,40, and 50 year continuous years of membership. We will be serving a spaghetti dinner after the ceremony. It’s to be held on Tuesday, March 9th, in our hall. We will be starting at 6pm sharp, so if you plan on attending, please be punctual. We hope to see you there!

Glenn Pierce, Adjutant – It’s time for a reminder that the North Branch American Legion Post 85 will again be offering 5 $1000 Scholarships to students of North Branch High School. Graduating Seniors should see their school counselor for applications and details.

The American Legion also offers a Legacy Scholarship to qualifying members.

To qualify and apply for The American Legion Legacy Scholarship, you must be able to answer YES to the following 3 questions.

Are you currently a high school senior and/or accepted at or attending an institution of higher education?
Is your institution of higher education a nonprofit and regionally-accredited institution? (If you are unsure, contact your institution’s admission office. Regional accreditation applies to the whole school not a program.)
Does at least one of the following statements apply to you?A legal parent of mine died while serving on active duty, U.S. military service on or after September 11, 2001. (Does not have to be a death out-of-country or in combat.)
A legal parent of mine is a Post-9/11 veteran of the U.S. military, who has been given a disability rating of 50% or higher by the Veterans Administration.

If you can answer YES to the previous 3 questions, you may fill out this online application.

If you have already created an account on the Legion.org website, please SIGN IN now. If you have not created an account on the Legion.org website, please click on the SIGN IN link and get started.

Post Talk
NORTH BRANCH POST # 85
By Glenn Pierce, Adjutant

Membership Meeting February 9th 6 PM
Auxiliary Meeting February 9th 7 PM
SAL Meeting February 16th 6 PM

Michelle Still, Auxiliary President – February is a good month to remind everyone that the American Legion Auxiliary offers many scholarships. Encourage high school juniors you know to check out the scholarships available with their high school career counselor. Also, Girls State will be held at Bethel University in June. This is an excellent program for learning responsible leadership and citizenship. For more information about scholarships and Girls State, contact me at 651-295-7260.

Happy New Year and blessings to you all. May 2021 bring everything you hope for.

Rick Hals, Commander – Greetings and I do hope everyone is doing well. We will be having our regular Feb. meeting at 6 PM on the 9th in the hall. We have several items that need to be taken care of, so please try to attend. the meeting will only be one hour so the Aux. can do their meeting at 7PM. Looking forward to seeing everyone on the 9th.

Jim Johnson, Post Chaplain – Over the years as Post Chaplain, I have taken part in many funerals for our departed Comrades, both Legion and VFW members.

I must say that it is with great remorse, I am doing a post talk about “Orville Otterness”, a devoted lifetime member of the American Legion for over 65 years.

Orv joined the American Legion in 1956 after serving in the US Army. His first Post was Spring Grove Post 249, transfer to Paterson Post in 1958, then transferred to Rochester Post 92 in 1959. From there he went to Post 155 in St. Paul. In 1970 he moved to Onamia Post 395. His last move brought him to North Branch Post 85 in 1997.

He was a man of many talents and wore many hats.

Locally, he served 3 terms as Post Commander, starting in 1985 and 1986, his second term in 1997, his last term was in 2007. He also served on many committees including Executive Board, BFNA, and Gaming Manager.

He helped the Legion with many events including hosting two District 10 conventions and two National Commander visits to our Post. He organized the Sons of the Legion Squadron in North Branch.

He helped the community in many events, including many Midsummer and Memorial Day events and Color Guard.

He was elected to District Vice Commander for 2 years in 1991 and 1992, later he was elected District Commander. He served 12 years on the Finance Committee, and 4 years on Continuity/Advisory Committee.

In 1986 he married Bev, and together they traveled to many National Conventions across the country where he worked as Assistant Sergeant at Arms in 21 different National conventions.

After each National convention Orv would bring back a small memento that was mounted on our American Legion flagpole, which is carried during our events.

I write this to you Orv with tears in my eyes, we teased you a lot at our membership meetings. You would talk too much and too long, but in the end we learned a lot from you. You are a true Legionnaire to our cause.

We will miss you my friend, we salute you, we thank you.
May God bless you and keep you in our hearts.

WE THANK YOU “SIR”!!

Post Chaplain
Jim Johnson

Glenn Pierce, Gaming Manager – With mask requirements and social distancing in place we are again operating our Thursday and Saturday bingo programs. Thursday we are offering a Jackpot of $1900 in 58 numbers or less and Saturday is up to $1700 in 57 numbers with the halftime coverall a constant $500 in 57 numbers. The electronic linked bingo is a fast growing attraction with some mega jackpots exceeding $30,000. We have had some big winners at the Legion with one so far in excess of $4,500. All proceeds from Charitable Gaming go towards the American Legion and all our programs.

Post Talk
NORTH BRANCH POST # 85
By Glenn Pierce, Adjutant

Membership Meeting November 10th 6 PM
Auxiliary Meeting November 10th 7 PM
SAL Meeting November 17th 6 PM

Michelle Still, Auxiliary President – November 16 to 20 is American Education Week. To celebrate this week, every year our unit makes a donation to the North Branch Education Association. Things are difficult for our educators right now. Would you consider reaching out to an educator to give them some encouragement.

Due to Covid-19, we will not be able to have our Veterans Day and Christmas Parties at the two assisted living facilities. These activities will be missed by the veterans and the auxiliary ladies. However, we will remember them in some way. Do you have an idea how we can remember our veterans remotely that you could share with me?

Be well and stay safe.

Orv Otterness, Post Service Officer – November brings us Veteran’s Day on the 11th. Originally, declared after World War I, it was called Armistice Day. Today we honor all veterans November 11th. Give an elbow or fist bump to those veterans you see on that special day. And, give a big Thank You to all those serving today in military service – they too are veterans already.

Thanksgiving is right around the corner and I wish you a blessed Thanksgiving Day. Enjoy what you can that day in a way that is comfortable and safe for you.

The third Tuesday, November 17th, Bryon Brown, our County Veterans Service Officer will again be at the Legion Hall to meet with you. Wendy, who works in his office and schedules all our rides to the Medical Centers will be with him. Come say hello to her and thank her for the job she does for us.

Randy Koivisto, First Vice Commander – Our October blood drive was a huge success! We had 38 donors, and that equates to a possibility of saving 123 lives. A little goes a long ways!

Speaking of blood drives… In an effort to escape all of the political ads on TV, I’ve been doing much more reading, and the
latest book I’ve tackled was written by a survivor of the USS Arizona sinking at Pearl Harbor. It’s titled “All the Gallant Men” by Donald Stratton.

After the Japanese raiders had departed and the wounded were being rushed to local civilian and military medical facilities, a frantic call went out on the radio for blood donors. In the first half hour 400 people from all walks of life showed up! Honolulu society women showed up and stood next to the city’s lower classes. The wife of a corporate president waited next to a waterfront washerwoman. The Japanese who lived on the island showed up in droves. A Portuguese mother brought her nineteen-year-old blind son, along with her sixteen-year-old blind daughter. Defense workers left their jobs, all grimy, gave blood, then returned to work. Welders came, along with fieldworkers. Employers bused their employees there. The crew from a Dutch ship, there for only a few hours, came to give blood. So did six husky Dutch women. A number of donors came back twice the same day. When a nurse recognized one second class seaman who was in line for his second donation, she chided him : ” You shouldn’t come back so soon.” “My brother was killed,” he explained, ” I want to do something.” Even the ladies of the evening from the notorious Hotel Street, came to lend a hand. They donated blood, which the Army doctors knew was clean. They took on the nasty job of washing tubing in the laboratory, and assisting in changing bandages and cleaning wounds. The horrific smell of burned flesh was overpowering, but they didn’t waver. They also assisted the medical teams on board ships that were transporting those expected to survive, but needed better stateside care available in California. In the aftermath of this terrible attack, our nation became one.

Eleanor Roosevelt carried this poem in her wallet after December 7th, and it can be found in the Roosevelt Presidential Library. It says:

Dear Lord,
Lest I continue
My complacent way,
Help me to remember that somewhere,
Somehow out there
A man died for me today.
As long as there be war,
I must answer
Am I worth dying for?

2,403 perished at Pearl Harbor
1,177 from the Arizona alone.

Glenn Pierce, Adjutant – Please note our meeting time is now at 6 PM on Tuesday, November 10th. We will have the meeting in the Hall to allow for the proper social distancing. Our Chisago County Veteran Service officer, Bryan Brown will be at Post 85 on November 17th at 9 AM for this month’s Veterans Coffee Talk. Bryan always has an informative presentation and he is able to answer many question Veterans have on their benefits and how to apply for them.

Join us for Coffee and donuts and learn about your benefits.

Post Talk
NORTH BRANCH POST # 85
By Glenn Pierce, Adjutant

Membership Meeting October 13th 6 PM
Auxiliary Meeting October 13th 7 PM
SAL Meeting October 20th 6 PM

Michelle Still, Auxiliary President – The National and Department levels recommended that we keep the same officers for 2020-2021 due to COVID-19. So, here I am, your president for the next year. This will be my eighth year serving with you. It is an honor.

Last year I chose National Security as my special project. The National Security Program maintains and promotes a strong defense nationally by supporting our service members and their families and the safety, comfort and well-being of our communities. I am promoting this program again this year. During our meetings our members donate their change to the project. Last spring the donations were enough to bring a treat to show our appreciation to the North Branch Fire Department. I plan to do something similar for another program in the community next spring. Remember to thank your emergency personnel.

Orv Otterness, Post Service Officer – The job of the Post Service Officer is to provide information and to help veterans upon request if they need some specific information. This information is something you may not be aware of but it is a source of help to veterans, their families, and to the active duty military.

The Poppy program, when it came to the attention of the organization, was made a program of the National organization of The American Legion. That would be shortly after World War I. The American Legion, after setting the program up, asked the American Legion Auxiliary to take the program as one of theirs to work. However, The National organization of the American Legion retained the right to supervise and make the rules for the distribution of the memorial poppy. For most of the previous years the poppy funds were used only for veterans. In recent years a change was made to include the Veterans families and the active-duty military men and women and their families. A good change. The volunteers who distribute poppies would like you to wear a poppy during the month of May in remembrance. They do NOT sell poppies; they ask for a donation. Every cent of that donation is used for our veterans and poppy programs. In our community poppy funds are used for veterans in our Care facilities, in contributions to the VA and Veterans Homes facilities in providing Christmas gifts and spending money to the residents. Keep that in mind when you make your donations. We are organized as an American Legion Family to care for and support our Veterans.

Glenn Pierce, Adjutant – Our Chisago County Veteran Service officer, Bryan Brown will be at Post 85 on October 20th at 9 AM for this month’s Veteran’s Coffee Talk. Bryan always has an informative presentation and he is able to answer many question Veterans have on their benefits and how to apply for them. Join us for Coffee and donuts and learn about your benefits.

Post Talk
NORTH BRANCH POST # 85
By Glenn Pierce, Adjutant

Membership Meeting September 8th 7 PM
Auxiliary Meeting September 8th 7 PM
SAL Meeting September 15th 6 PM

1st Vice Commander Randy Koivisto –

Going for a Walk

This story was taken from the March/April issue of the DAV magazine.

William Shuttleworth, a 71 year old Air Force veteran, avid hiker, and retired educator, decided that he wanted to do something purposeful in retirement, so he decided to raise funds for the DAV Charitable Service Trust program. His goal was to raise $5,000 by walking from his home in Newbury Mass., to San Diego, a distance of 3,300 miles. The plan was to stop in all the small towns along the way and speak with folks, and fellow veterans about the cause. That goal was surpassed in the first three weeks.

A week before he left, William walked all around town, anywhere he went, with a 32 pound back pack, to train for the upcoming hike.

Shuttleworth said, “I just basically walked out my front door and took off”. The journey took 115 days, averaging 30 miles a day.

Starting on May 15th, and finishing up on Aug. 31st at San Diego, next to the USS Midway. The toughest part of the hike was the last 10 days, when it was seldom below 100 degrees. Shuttleworth was able to smash his goal, and raised $70,000!

With all of the negative news lately, I think we could all use a bit of the good as well.

Michelle Still, Auxiliary President – Our last meeting was in March. Wow, that was a long time ago! I have scheduled a meeting for Sept. 8th at our new time of 7:00 pm. Masks are required and sadly there will be no treats. Not much has happened over the summer, but we have a lot of things to discuss at the meeting. It will be good to see everyone.

Orv Otterness, Post Service Officer – The County Veterans Service Officer will be at the North Branch Legion Hall Tuesday,
September 15, 9 a.m. He usually has a presentation. He can likely answer your questions. Mark your calendar for that meeting.

There is a change in van service to medical appointments. If it works for you, appointments can be made at the Maplewood VA Clinic for Monday mornings. Van Service will be provided. There is no cafeteria at that clinic. Van service is available Tuesdays and Thursdays to the Minneapolis VA Medical Care Center and on Wednesdays to the VA facility in St. Cloud. You must make your own appointments. When you are scheduled with a date and time call Wendy to schedule your ride. Wendy is in the CVSO office and she can be reached at this phone number: 651-213-5605

Labor Day 2020 will occur on Monday, September 7. Labor Day pays tribute to the contributions and achievements of American workers and is traditionally observed on the first Monday in September. It was created by the labor movement in the late 19th
century and became a federal holiday in 1894. Labor Day weekend also symbolizes the end of summer for many Americans, and is celebrated with parties, street parades and athletic events.

Post Talk
NORTH BRANCH POST # 85
By Glenn Pierce, Adjutant

Membership Meeting August 11th 7 PM
SAL Meeting August 18th 6 PM

Orv Otterness, Post Service Officer – Meetings with the County Veterans Service Officer have resumed at the North Branch Legion Hall the third Tuesdays of the month at 9 a.m. Those meetings are always worth your time. When you attend be sure to wear your mask and keep a distance of six feet between attendees. If you have a family member with you no need to worry about distance between the two of you! Mark the visits on your calendar.

Michelle Still, Auxiliary President – Your membership dues support many programs sponsored by the American Legion Family. Two of the programs your dues support help our members. They are the American Legion Family Hospital Association and the Auxiliary Emergency Fund. These programs provide temporary emergency assistance. Grants from the Hospital Association can assist legion and auxiliary members with hospital bills and the Emergency Fund assists auxiliary members with disaster relief. You will soon receive your membership renewal notice. Please take a moment and return your dues right away. Go to the website ALAForVeterans.org for great information regarding other benefits and discounts available to you as a member.

In the community, our Relay for Life Team virtually raised over $1350 for the American Cancer Society! Thank you team!

Thursday night Bingo has returned and so have concessions. Thank you Bobbie Elmstrand for faithfully handling our concessions every week.

2020 North Branch American Legion Riders – The NBALR had its Christmas In July motorcycle ride Saturday July 18th. It was a hot one, and the ride was 120 miles long, but it accomplished the needed funding for our Christmas party for local families of deployed soldiers. We had riders from the St. Paul, Arcade-Phalen, Forest Lake and Roseville Legions along with local patriots, all-in-all there were 40 motorcycles involved in this run. This years military family Christmas party will be great because of these truly generous bikers. The participants in this year’s C I J motorcycle ride enjoyed the comradery after the long lockdown.

American Legion testifies before House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs

American Legion Deputy Director of Health Policy Katie Purswell testified July 23 before the House Committee on Veteran’s Affairs on several pieces of legislation impacting veterans.

In the era of the COVID-19 pandemic, the mission of The American Legion has never been more clear, Purswell said during her testimony. She highlighted a few ways Legionnaires have supported their community members and veterans since the pandemic started, such as by collecting and delivering food, hygiene and cleaning supplies; hosting blood drives; and making face masks.

“Our national commander’s call for ‘Buddy Checks’ have increased by our members to ensure we are meeting the needs of our veterans. We have held financial workshops, resume writing seminars, virtual career fairs, town hall and networking meet-ups,” she added.

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced in April that they were seeing dramatic increases in telemental health care use during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“Legislation like H.R. 3228 (the VA Mission Telehealth Clarification Act) will afford veterans the ability to see a health care provider more quickly through telehealth by allowing veterans to be seen by a larger portion of VA,” Purswell said.

In addition to the health crisis caused by COVID-19, the pandemic has also put many veterans in precarious financial situations due to unemployment or reduced income. The American Legion believes H.R.7111, the Veterans Economic Recovery Act of 2020, will help bring down the unemployment rate of veterans who have lost jobs and critical income due to COVID-19.

“The current unemployment rate for veterans has more than doubled in the last year,” Purswell said. “With nearly 17,000 service members leaving active duty service every month, these numbers will not fall any time soon. If done correctly, the Economic Recovery Act will help veterans, young and old, transition into new jobs.”

Members of the National Guard have been greatly impacted by COVID-19, as they have been constantly mobilized and demobilized to support first responders during the crisis.

“At one point in June, nearly one quarter of our entire National Guard, 120,000 soldiers, were mobilized in our communities,” Purswell stated. “These service members deserve to return to the lives they were living without fear of being jobless.” The USERRA Protections for State Active Duty will allow these service members to fall under the current USERRA guidelines.

“The American Legion will continue to serve our veteran population and others because that is who we are and what we do. But we need Congress to meet us halfway by providing sound legislation that supports our veterans.”

Post Talk
NORTH BRANCH POST # 85
By Glenn Pierce, Adjutant

Membership Meeting July 14th 7 PM
SAL Meeting July 21st 6 PM

Rick Hals, Commander – Greetings to all. The Legion has reopened and things are slowly starting to come to life, after a long shut down I hope it will come faster than its looking right now. On to better news, the County VSO officer, Brian Brown, will be at the Legion Hall every 3rd Tuesday. There will be our regular July meeting on the 14th, hope to see you there. I hope everyone has safe and fun 4th of July weekend.

Michelle Still, Auxiliary President – What a summer we are having! I hope everyone is doing well and staying safe. The Chisago County Relay for Life is August 1st. Of course, this is a “virtual” relay, there will be no walk or activities. However, the American Legion Family has a team again in order to raise money to support this cause. If you would like to help our team raise funds for the American Cancer Society, you may mail your donations to our team captain, Dianne Klund. Her address is 9878 375th St., North Branch, MN. Checks should be made payable to American Cancer Society. Thank you for your generous poppy donations. One of our members has been sewing face masks. She is donating 1/2 of the price she receives to our poppy fund and has donated over $700, so far. Thank you, Priscilla! FYI, our next meeting is scheduled for September 8th. I will keep everyone posted. Have a safe
and happy Independence Day!

Orv Otterness, Service Officer – To be eligible for VA benefits, the veteran needs to serve 180 consecutive days or if they are a combat veteran, they don’t need 180 consecutive days. This applies to National Guard or Reserves. This does not include basic training. For more information contact Bryan T, Brown, Chisago County Veterans Officer, 313 N Main St., Center City, MN 55012, Phone is 651-213-5680.

Randy Koivisto, 1st Vice Commander – Cemetery headstone project update: The Sunrise cemetery headstone project is up to the maintenance phase now. Attached is a set of photos of one of the civil war era stones that has been treated with the product D/2, which is the same chemical that is used at the White House, and Arlington National Cemetery. The first photo was taken in 2017 when the project was started, and the last was taken this a couple of months ago. The chemical is spayed on at full strength once a year, then each time it rains, some of the crud washes away. Some of the stones are leaning and need to be set straight, and that will be a follow on project. All work must be approved by the cemetery board of directors. I was able to get approval to expand the program to the Kahbakong cemetery located on Hwy 95, just outside of Taylors Falls. Fellow member, Myles Gunia, has joined me in purchasing and applying D/2. One early Saturday morning, we spent three hours on brushing the excess crud from the stones, then applying the chemical. Due to the larger number of stones to be worked on, I wasn’t able to document all of them, as was done at Sunrise, but I have a sampling of some. The expectation was that we would find similar types of stones to work on, as at Sunrise, but
we both were amazed at what we found! The Civil War veterans buried there were not just from Minnesota regiments, but they were from Wisconsin, Ohio, and Illinois units as well. We also found many WWI veteran’s graves, and one in particular was a member of a Flying unit, so he served when our Air Force was in its infant stages. Grave markers were also found from survivors of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Normandy, and Iwo Jima. Unexpectedly, we discovered the grave site of a Desert Storm Navy A-6 Intruder Navigator that had been lost while flying off of the aircraft carrier USS Ranger. There is a tribute stone to the Sea Bees, and there is even a veteran Merchant Marine buried there. I had this vision of what it would be like if all of those fallen veterans would be able to stand next to their graves in their uniforms. What a sight that would be!

Finally, Thank You to Myles for joining the effort! It’s an honor to help bring back these monuments to a respectful condition.

National Commander, James W. “Bill” Oxford

Dear American Legion Family Members and Friends,

Some of the surviving World War II veterans are suffering a great injustice. And it is up to The American Legion to persuade our lawmakers to correct this. It’s the least we can do as we honor the courageous men and women who braved tyranny and saved democracy during the dark days of the early 1940s.

While most of these veterans are using VA services, some are not. Through no fault of their own, these veterans were dropped from the VA system or are being subjected to means testing. In 1996, Congress passed the Veterans Health Care Eligibility Act, establishing means testing for access to VA for some veterans, while also exempting all Spanish American War and World War I veterans from that criteria. Now it’s time to do the same for The Greatest Generation.

That is why The American Legion National Executive Committee approved Resolution 3 at the 99th national convention in Reno, Nev., which calls for supporting legislation to amend the 1996 act “to extend the exemption from a means test to World War II veterans.”

But nothing has changed in the three years since that resolution was approved.

That is why I am calling on you today to help recognize these heroes with actions far more meaningful than words.

We can never truly thank the Greatest Generation enough for what they did in the Pacific and European theaters. But one way we can express our gratitude to those still living is to right this wrong on their behalf. Join me in contacting your congressional representatives today to tell them to open VA to all World War II veterans.

Thank you for your support of our American Legion programs, legislative agenda and, of course, our World War II veterans.
Stay safe, my friends and comrades.

Glenn Pierce, Gaming Manager – Our Bingo program is up and running with reduced seating to meet the social distancing standards. Thursday’s at 6:30 and Saturday’s at 6 PM. Pulltabs as well as the linked Bingo offer a variety of games and prize potential. Mondays and Thursday’s we will be having a Meat Raffle offering $20 gift cards from various North Branch Area businesses. Stop in for a visit and stay safe.

Post Talk
NORTH BRANCH POST # 85
By Glenn Pierce, Adjutant

June Meeting Tuesday the 9th 7 PM in the Legion Hall

Rick Hals, Commander – Greetings to all. Well this certainly has been interesting times, no open legion club room, no meetings. and NO midsummer activities. the later being the most strange to adjust to. As far as opening, we are waiting anxiously to hear from the Governor as to a date. While we wait to open we finished tile at the bar entrance and have a little painting to do, so we will be ready when the word comes to open. We did a modified Memorial Day ceremonies with no to a few people in attendance, it went well and I thank all who participated. We, as a Legion are planning on having a meeting on June 9th at 7:00 pm, I hope to see you there. Be careful and safe.

June 14th is Flag Day

President Harry S. Truman, an active and proud member of The American Legion, signed an act of Congress in 1949 which designated June 14th as Flag Day. Our esteem for the Flag is why The American Legion called together 68 other patriotic, fraternal, civic and military groups for the purpose of drafting a code of flag etiquette in 1923. They were enormously successful. It is why American Legionnaires continue to visit classrooms to teach young people about the importance of respecting this precious symbol of freedom.

One of the speakers at the 1923 National Flag Conference was the legendary labor leader Samuel Gompers. He described how union workers felt about Old Glory. “To us,” he said, “the American Flag means more than even its colors in themselves portray. It means the leadership of the democratic and humane struggle has been carried on throughout all the ages.”