Veterans Day on the Hill took place last month at the State Capitol and set the bar for most attendees. The annual event hosted by the Commanders’ Task Force (CTF) and Minnesota Association of County Veteran Service Officers (MACVSO) drew nearly a thousand Veterans, their families and supporters to the State Capitol on Wednesday, April 17 for meetings with legislators, a lunch at the Cedar Street Armory and a rally in the Capitol Rotunda.

At the Armory, attendees heard messages from a vast array of speakers in the Veterans community including the Minnesota Assistance Council for Veterans (MACV), VISN-23, DAV-Minnesota and even the American Legion’s National Commander Dan Seehafer from neighboring Wisconsin. They all spoke about topics important to Veterans including homelessness prevention, suicide awareness and state benefits. The attendees can then use that information to advocate for legislation with their elected officials.

The Rally in the Rotunda featured both leaders from host organizations and elected officials and was emceed by Commander Dan Meyer of the Minnesota VFW. Trent Dilks, who leads the DAV-Minnesota’s legislative efforts kicked off the rally and introduced Governor Tim Walz. He reminded the audience what has been accomplished over the last few years thanks to the advocacy from this event and beyond, but also realizes that there is more to be done including his goal to make Minnesota the fourth state in the nation to end Veterans homelessness.

Other speakers from Veterans groups included Kristy Janigo of the American Legion and MACVSO, Ron Vaughn of the VFW Auxiliary and MDVA Commissioner Brad Lindsay. Other elected officials who spoke included Senate Veterans Committee Vice Chair Sen. Nicole Mitchell, Rep. Mark Wiens, a Veteran retiring from the legislature after this year, and Sen. Judy Seeberger, a military spouse.

Following Veterans Day on the Hill, the Minnesota Senate voted overwhelmingly to support the Veterans and Military Affairs omnibus bill. Nearly two weeks later, the House of Representatives affirmed their support with an unanimous vote. Governor Walz signed it into law on May 8.

Photos from the event are available on our Flickr page.