America celebrated Memorial Day, D-day and Flag Day with great media coverage marking the bravery and sacrifice of our military men and women from past challenges to our democracy and nation.
The Fourth of July is approaching and we should pause and appreciate a new act of leadership that has gone practically unnoticed. Just before Memorial Day, Congressman Collin Peterson asked all eight Minnesota members of the House of Representatives and both Minnesota senators to sign a joint letter to the president calling for preparations to hold a “State Funeral” for the last Medal of Honor recipient from World War II. With this letter, Minnesota members of Congress joined with Utah, West Virginia and Missouri delegations in calling for such plans.
Only three Medal of Honor recipients from WWII are still with us. A final, non-presidential State Funeral for the last of these three men is a salute to all of the 16 million American men and women who served during the 1941-45 war years, including 326,000 Minnesotans.
A loose-knit group of Americans have been working to muster public support for this salute through the State Funeral for WWII Veterans organization (https://worldwar2salute.org/). Leading veterans’ organizations endorsed the plan at national conventions.
Minnesotans surely appreciate what our ancestors did for us and what our bipartisan congressional delegation just did. Rep. Peterson and his colleagues remind us that decency and cooperation are traits still alive in America. You can join in supporting this effort by letting your lawmakers know that you support this effort to honor the memory of those who served, and you can visit the website to sign the petition supporting this effort.
