On April 20, Veterans and their families flocked to the State Capitol for a rally supporting the shared initiatives of the Commanders’ Task Force CTF, Minnesota Association of County Veterans Service Officers (MACVSO) and the United Veterans Legislative Council (UVLC). Representatives from those groups and elected officials addressed the crowd inside the Capitol Rotunda.

The rally started with Trent Dilks, legislative director of the DAV-Minnesota who set the tone for the hour with his call for a Veterans omnibus bill. He doesn’t want to see Veterans issues getting bogged down by partisan fighting. After him, nearly every speaker mentioned the desire for an omnibus bill this year.

Elected officials that spoke to the crowd included Governor Tim Walz. The chairs of the House and Senate Veterans committees, Sen. Andrew Lang and Rep. Rob Ecklund. The last elected official to speak was Rep. Bob Dettmer who has been a constant presence at these rallies and will be retiring from the legislature at the end of his term.

Speakers from the Veterans organizations involved were DAV-Minnesota Commander Ron Haugen, who also served as the rally’s master of ceremonies. Marty Howes and Greg Peterson, the current and past presidents of MACVSO. Neal Loidolt, the CEO of the Minnesota Assistance Council for Veterans, represented UVLC and made a plea to the crowd and the legislature to provide funding to continue the work to end Veterans homelessness in the state.

Before heading up to the Capitol, DAV-Minnesota hosted a pre-rally lunch at the St. Paul Armory.