SALUTE: Veteran's Day Remembrance Book 2014

VETERANS DAY 2014

PASSION FOR PLANES A SPECIAL DINNER SURVIVING MEMORIES A publication of the Brainerd Dispatch and Echo Publishing

We join all of America in celebrating the endearing principles on which our nation was founded.

We proudly salute the men and women of our Armed Forces, along with their families, who defend those principles with courage and honor.

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CONTENTS ‘14

Staff PUBLISHER Tim Bogenschutz

In This Issue

4 Homes For Our Troops

COPY EDITORS Nancy Vogt

Qualifying veterans receive mortgage-free homes from an award winning non-profit organization.

MARKETING COORDINATOR Leo Miller

10 Dinner Night

ART DIRECTOR Lisa Henry

The Elks invite veterans along with their families to dinner.

ADVERTISING MANAGER Susie Alters

14 Passion For Planes 16

Bomber pilot, innovator, designer, manufacturer and CEO, Dennis Scanlan’s photos and letters are compiled into a book.

ADVERTISING Brainerd Dispatch and Echo Publishing Media Consultants

Still Surviving

ADVERTISING DESIGNERS Andy Goble, Sue Stark, Cindy Spillman, Angela Hoefs

Lundrigan talks about his medic career and the affects of his experiences in Vietnam.

24

CUSTOMER SERVICE Marva Pearson, Kori Flowers

On The Cover Dennis Russell Scanlan Jr., front with the Captain bars on his cap, is shown in the Control Tower in Alconbury, England, on October 5, 1945.

4 Robert G. Hurst Korean War 1951-1954 1st Calvary Division

CONTACT US: Lisa.Henry@brainerddispatch.com (218) 855-5871 ATTN: Salute Brainerd Dispatch, P.O. Box 974, Brainerd, MN 56401 Veterans Day Salute is an annual publication of the Brainerd Dispatch and Echo Publishing.

Printed by Forum Communications. copyright© 2013 VOLUME 2, FALL 2014

LeRoy Siegel (Center) Korean War

Dennis G. Havel Sr. Army, Vietnam 1967-1968 1st Infantry Division

Veterans • November 2014 3

HOMES FOR OUR TROOPS CharLes B. Cronin Army, WWII 1942-1946 Deceased August 26, 1980

Marvin Lee Johnson Air Force Deceased February 15, 1994

Joseph F. Cronin Army, Vietnam, 1969-1970 2nd Battalion 8th

H

Building homes, rebuilding lives.

omes for Our Troops (HFOT) is a privately funded 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization building specially adapted, mortgage-free homes nationwide for the most severely injured Veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Since its inception in 2004, over 90 percent of donations to Homes for Our Troops has gone to directly support Veterans.

As of September 20, 2014, HFOT has built 168 specially adapted homes nationwide. There are currently 50 Veterans on the active project list.

The goal is to build a home for every Veteran who qualifies for one of the specially adapted homes.

HFOT has received Charity Navigator’s highest rating of 4 Stars every year since 2008. Charity Watch has awarded HFOT an A rating and included us on its list of Top-Rated Military & Veterans Charities.

The average cost to construct each specially adapted home nationwide runs $430,000. Homes for Our Troops receives no assistance from the Department of Veterans Affairs or any other government organization. Nearly 70 percent of operational budget is generated by individual donors and community fundraisers nationwide who step up to help our American heroes by coordinating everything from lemonade stands to golf tournaments. The remaining financial sup-

port they receive is from corporations, foundations and corporate sponsors.

sGT Dennis M. oTTeM Army 1955-1957 7th Army - Germany 4 Veterans • November 2014

“These homes restore some of the freedom and independence our Veterans sacrificed defending ours, and enable them to focus on their family, recovery, and rebuilding their lives,” ~ HFOT

For more information or to donate: www.hfotusa.org • (866) 7 TROOPS

Gary F oLson

eLMer John Johnson

LLoyD hanDeLanD

ronaLD r newMan

Army

Navy Deceased April 3, 1978

Army, 1942-1945 Deceased December 1992

Army Deceased May 27, 2012

Larry p BiBLe

GorDon sChuLke

JeFF voLkL

spC GeorGe w w. CauLey

Navy, 1968-1972 Vietnam

Navy, WWII

Marines, 1988-1993

MN National Guard Army Deceased (KIA) Oct. 10, 2009

Brainerd Elks #615 215 S. 9th Street, Brainerd 829-2643 after 3pm

“So Long As Th

ere A

re Ve

tA terans , The B enovol en

rote nd P

ctive Order Of Elks W

ill N

e ve r

Forge

In 1907, the BPO Elks Grand Lodge designated by resolution June 14 as Flag Day, Mandating Observation was adopted by every lodge in 1911.

t Them”

Every other month a visit to St. Cloud Veteran’s Hospital to play BINGO Free dinners every Tuesday night for Central Lakes College enrolled Veterans and their families September thru May Participate in the Disabled Veterans Turkey Hunt and the Disabled Veterans Deer Hunt at Camp Ripley We support the Brainerd Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) Donate to Wreaths for the Fallen Offer a free week of camp to 9-13 year old children of deployed soldiers at the MN Elks Youth Camp during Troops Week

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Community Interests:

Interested in becoming a member, visit www.brainerdelks.org

Thank You Veterans For Your Service To Our Country So We May Enjoy Our Freedom! www.brainerdelks.org Veterans • November 2014 5

wayne r. Thiesse

BoB Dwyer

keiTh Dwyer

Army Medic

Army Deceased November 4, 2009

Army, 1987-1990

Leroy sieGeL Army, Korea 1952-1954 Deceased January 8, 1995

A Heartfelt Thank You to Veterans and Their Families…From the Goedkers L CpL JaMes sipper Marines, 2011- present

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Semper Fi…Kevin Goedker United States Marine, 1990-1995 1990-1995

This Veteran’s Day Take Time To Honor All Veterans For Their Service and Sacrifice For Our Freedom!

TheoDore M. oLson Marine Corps Iow Jima - Guam - Guadacanal

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shaun M. TiChenor Army 6 Veterans • November 2014

eDwarD u. MarTin Army, Korea and WWII

GeorGe riCharDs

DaLe CLiFTon Monson

Army, 1940-1944 Deceased (KIA) Dec. 6, 1994

Navy, 1944-1945

John n. Lee Air Force, 1953-1957 Deceased May 1, 2014

s sGT riCharD Tappe

wayne seaLe

CoMManDer sTewarT r. kunDe

Air Force Deceased July 7, 2008

Navy, 1961-1965 Cold War and Vietnam AWACS aircrew Navigator

Navy Deceased April 18, 1992

BruCe Lapka 001158381r1

Navy, 1968-1972

BEN KRUEGER

PEQUOT AMERICAN LEGION POST 49 AUXILIARY & S.A.L. Join us for our

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raLph riCharDs Army, WWII Deceased 1954

L CpL JeFFrey knapp Marines, 2008-2012

at the Pequot Lakes American Legion Post 49 with the Jenkins VFW Post 3839 Nov 11th at 11:00 am.

Help us honor all our Veterans & show our appreciation BAR HOURS: MON-FRI OPEN AT NOON; SAT 12:00 NOON PULL TABS AVAILABLE | FREE HALL RENTAL TO NON-PROFITS 218-568-9881

sGT GreG n. riewer MN Army National Guard Deceased (KIA) March 23, 2007

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warren D. MorGan

roy sCheLLin

National Guard and Army Reserve

Air Force, WWII Deceased March 6, 2012 Veterans • November 2014 7

wiLLiaM e. BenDer Airforce Deceased June 12, 2014

kenneTh TooLe Army National Guard, 1st Lieutenant, Basra Iraq

kevin GoeDker

roBerT pp. Cook

John r. MorGan

John pp. MorGan

Army, Air Corps, WWII Deceased October 3, 1987

Army, Korea 121 Evac Hospital Deceased Dec. 22, 2006

Army; Philippines, Japan, WWII Deceased Sept. 11, 2004

JaMes r MorGan

sTeven J. MorGan

Army Infantry, Korea 1974

Army, Persian Gulf War

ToM hiCe Navy, 1990-1996, Gulf War

MauriCe MoGensen

BruCe ruikka

QuenTin (peTe) hoskin

Marines, 1990-1995

Navy, 1950-1953 Korean War

Army, 1971-1972

Navy Deceased Sept. 24, 2013

riCh heinzen

sTan T BLaisDeLL

CLarenCe s. CarLson

s sGT rayMonD a hoLMes

WWII

WWII 1943-1945

1st Army HQ, WWII, 1943-1945

Air Force, WWII Deceased 2009

8 Veterans • November 2014

riCharD wayT

harLey eLLis

Navy, 1943-1946 Fire control, 3rd class

Army Reserves, Medical Corpsman

RED T-shirt Day

DonaLD C. ziTur sr

harvey winG

Army/ Airforce, WWII

Army

Clinton L. Skoog (Left); deceased, 2004; served in the Army, Gregory C. Skoog (Right), Army .

RED T-shirt Day

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Jonathan and Karen Nieman with son, Leroy.

Photos By Kelly humPhrey

DINNER NIGHT Veterans Dinner Night at the Elks is well received

By Jennifer stocKinger Brainerd Dispatch Staff Writer

T

hey say a meal will bring people together.

That is the case on Tuesday nights at the Elks Lodge in downtown Brainerd.

For the past three years, the Elks has hosted a family dinner night for veterans who are enrolled at Central Lakes College in Brainerd.

The Elks received a grant to make the dinner possible.

James VanDuyn, public relations chairman of the Elks Lodge in Brainerd, 10 Veterans • November 2014

said the Elks applies for the grant every year to support the veterans. He said the grant is part of the community investment program.

“That’s what the Brainerd Elks do, support veterans,” VanDuyn said. “We have a motto that says ‘So long as there are veterans, the Benevolent and Protective Order Of Elks will never forget them.’”

The dinner is limited to 10 veterans and their guests. The dinner on Oct. 14 consisted of steak, baked potato, garlic bread, coleslaw and a variety of desserts.

Other Elks members also are welcome to enjoy the meal.

“We have around 60-80 people Tues-

James Dehen (Left) with Jeff McArthur enjoy visiting at the Elks’ Dinner Night.

day nights and when the snowbirds leave we have about 40,” said VanDuyn.

“I’m proud we can do this dinner for the veterans,” said VanDuyn. “We’re

y

giving back to those who gave their lives for us. We have so much appreciation for them.

“During dinner we talk about everyday life, about their service or where they served.”

Jeff McArthur of Baxter began coming to the dinners in September.

“I’m fairly new to coming to the dinners,” McArthur said. “I enjoy it. I heard about the dinners last year but with my schedule it didn’t work out.”

McArthur volunteered with the Elk’s fishing fling this past spring and learned more about the lodge. It was at that point, that he wanted to go to the dinners at the Elks as he believes in its mission.

McArthur was in the Army for 23 years. He served as a field artillery officer in Desert Storm from 1990-91 and he was in the scout truck for command security during the Iraq War in 2011-12.

He retired in 2012.

“I pretty much joined the Army right out of high school,” he said. “That’s why I never went to college right away. Going to college was not a priority for me at the time. … That is why I am going now.”

McArthur is in his second year in the business management program at CLC. He also is in the work study program at the CLC Veterans Center. He helps with the Second Harvest, where he collects day-old food from businesses such as Starbucks, Caribou Coffee and Olive Garden.

At CLC, McArthur also helps with a Post Traumatic Stress Disorder support group.

McArthur said VanDuyn and the other Elks members have been welcoming to the veterans. He said VanDuyn also goes to the Brainerd Veterans Administration

“I’m proud that we can do this dinner for the veterans.” ~ James VanDuyn

“This is a chance to meet other vets and guests and to expand friendships.” ~ Karen Nieman

(VA) Outpatient Clinic, where he talks with the veterans, listens to their stories and thanks them.

“I’m kind of shy and I don’t think I did anything special,” McArthur said. “It’s hard to hear people thanking me for my services, but I’m getting better at accepting it.”

Jonathan and Karen Nieman of Brainerd and their almost 1-year-old son Leroy - who were not married at the time when the Elks family dinner night started three years ago - have been coming since the dinner was established. They said they heard about the free meal for veterans and thought, “Why not come?”

Jonathan Nieman served in the Army from 2005-07 and Karen Nieman was able to attend the dinners because she was living with her father, who is a Navy veteran.

“This is a chance to meet other vets and guests and to expand friendships,” Karen Nieman said. We (Karen and Jonathan) got to know each other better by coming here.”

Jonathan is in his fourth year at CLC. He earned his welding degree and is working on certificates for underwater search and rescue and for Emergency Medical Technician. Karen is in her third year working on her associates of arts degree.

The Niemans spend time at the college’s veterans center, too, as they enjoy talking with other veterans.

“I was lucky enough to have never gone to Iraq,” Jonathan Nieman said, but he was stationed at three different bases during his two-year Army career. He was

discharged in 2007 because of a knee injury. He was stationed in Fort Jackson, S.C.; Fort Huachuca, Ariz.; and Shofield Barracks, Hawaii.

Nieman said his role in the Army was as an intelligence analysis.

Michael Grosskreutz of Brainerd was at the October dinner for the first time with his wife, Hayley, and 9-year-old son, Vincent. Grosskreutz said they decided to come because they enjoy talking to other veterans.

Grosskreutz was in the Army from 1989-93 and served in Desert Storm as a combat engineer.

“I blew things up and defused bombs,” he said.

After dinner, Grosskreutz helped the Elks volunteers by serving coffee and doing other chores.

Elks Exalted Ruler James Dehen said the veterans’ dinners have been well received.

“Vets are important to us,” said Dehen.

“They deserve respect. … We watched when the Vietnam vets came back and they were not treated well. … We will never forget where our vets have been.”

Dehen said the veterans from the Iraq War have been welcomed home in a much better manner and are respected, but, he added, “They still have some challenges and need our support.”

Dehen said he is not a veteran, but his father was in the air force. He said one reason he joined the Elks was because of its support of veterans.

Besides the veterans dinner, the Elks also hosts Burger Night on Thursdays, Chef ’s Choice on Fridays and also has a Polish Feed on Wednesdays for its members. VanDuyn said there are about 250 members of the Elks and currently they are in the process of recruiting more members. Anyone interested can go online at www.brainerdelks.org or call 8292643.

JENNIFER STOCKINGER may be reached at jennifer.stockinger@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5851. Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jennewsgirl.

Veterans • November 2014 11

PASSION FOR PLANES

D

ennis Russell Scanlan Jr. (1914-1993) of St. Paul, who spent summers on Schaefer’s Point on Gull Lake with his wife, Peg, was in the 482nd Pathfinder Bomb Group in the Mighty 8th Air Force, which was formed in August 1943 during World War II. Scanlan described it as a “bastard outfit.”

“We were the first bomber group to be

equipped with radar,” he said. “The Pathfinder label meant that a B-17 equipped with a radar scanner would fly lead position in a combat wing, and all bombers would drop their bombs based on that bomb release. The trouble was that the radar was housed underneath the nose of the bomber and stuck out like a bathtub. German fighter pilots soon learned to spot these planes and knock them out first if at all possible.”

Scanlan worked his way up to senior flying control officer. He was in Alconbury, England, for 33 months. His family still has all the letters he wrote to Peg during the war, and all of Peg’s letters to him.

Denny and Peg went on to have six sons and three daughters. Denny and his father, “Pops,” established The Scanlan Group Of Companies, designing and manufacturing surgical instruments and products, based in St. Paul.

Today the company includes four third generation family members, two fourth generation family members and one fifth generation family member.

Three of his children - Tim, Joe and Brigid - helped compile a hard-cover

“We were the first bomber group to be equipped with radar.” ~Scanlan book, “Eyes Ever Skyward; The Life of Denny Scanlan,” about their father’s life. The back cover reads: “As a boy, Denny Scanlan would spend the afternoons across the street listening to stories of the Nelson boys who had just returned from World War I. They had been fighter pilots and brought back pieces of airplanes to show him. Those bits and pieces were what Denny’s dreams were made of and turned his gaze forever towards the sky.

“Denny soon encountered obstacles that would threaten his dream of becoming a fighter pilot, but he continued

we appreciate all you’ve done to protect our country!

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Denny and Peg. Husband and wife.

Thank You Veterans, We Salute You!

Veterans,

12 Veterans • November 2014

to fix his eyes skyward. This perspective carried into all realms of his life as he became a pioneer in Minnesota aviation, veteran of World War II, an innovator, designer and manufacturer of surgical instrumentation, and the CEO of Scanlan International.

“This story is the first-person account of the life of an ‘everyman,’ who sought lofty expectations from life and challenged those around him to do the same.”

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harry ruikka sr.

ChesTer TranGsruD

roBerT CoLe

Army, 1968-1971

Army, WWII Deceased Feb. 4, 1965

Navy, Korea 1951-1954

Army, 1953-1961

LTC JaCk norDLinG

sTeven J kuhn

Duane FLaT a eGraFF aT

syverin FLaT a eGraFF aT

Army, WWII and Korea

Army Deceased April 24, 1999

Navy, 1976-1983

Army, WWI, 1916-1919 Deceased May 26, 1990

Andrew W Stiller, Sr (left) with Elvis Presley.

Stiller served in the Army from 1958 to 1964.

GorDon e BerG

Robert G. Hurst enjoying boot camp R&R before heading over to Korea 1951-1954.

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Veterans • November 2014 13

STILL SURVIVING By traVis grimler Echo Journal Staff Writer

T

ed Lundrigan is well known as the city attorney for Pine River, but few might guess what unforunfor tunate things he experienced before he started working for the city.

Ted Lundrigan

Practicing law is in Lundrigan’s blood. His father was an attorney in Pine River, and his grandfather was an attorney in Cass Lake.

It was natural that he would follow in their steps.

Lundrigan grew up in Pine River. At age 24, when he graduated from the University of Minnesota with a degree in English and a minor in Spanish, it was fully his intention to become an attorney, and he eventually did, but not without a slight delay in his plans.

“Before I joined the Army I took my law school entrance exams. It would have been in 1969. I was accepted into the university law school. I went to law school and spoke to the dean,” Lundrigan said. “The draft was pretty active at that time and I was 1-A. He said, ‘Why don’t you go into the Army and get your 14 Veterans • November 2014

service obligation out of the way?

It would be better than if you are in law school and got drafted out of law school.’ He said, ‘We’ll hold your place.’ It turns out he was a brigadier general in the National Guard.”

Lundrigan agreed. He went to basic training in Seattle, Wash., in June. Afterward the Army put his education to good use.

“I had a degree in English, a minor in Spanish. I could type. I pointed this out to them. I would be a great clerk for someone in Spain and South America. They made me a medic,” Lundrigan said.

Lundrigan tells people he was

trained in two things. “Start the breathing. Stop the bleeding.”

“Very rude, very crude, but nobody died. I saved two lives with mouth to mouth resuscitation.

That is quite the experience,” Lundrigan said.

Even as a medic, Lundrigan didn’t do what he expected right away. He worked at Fort Jackson, S.C. testing swimming pools, ponds or any other supply of water. Lundrigan’s duty was posh in comparison to what many soldiers were doing at the time.

“Then I ran over the colonel’s dog,” Lundrigan said.

It was an accident. Every week

h .

-

t e y s o t

riCharD rezanka

riCharD B. rezanka

GiLBerT Lowe

Marines, 1965-1974

Army, WWI, 1917-1918 Deceased August 2, 1990

Air Force, WWII, 1943-1945 Deceased March 23, 1992

Air Force, WWII Deceased December 25, 1983

DonaLD p sTehr

JaCk eDwarD Meyer

eLMer a. FLaT a eGraFF aT

DwiGhT B Mayer

Army, Vietnam 169th Engineers

Air Force, 1950-1973 Deceased July 9, 2013

Army, WWII, 1942-1945 Deceased Sept. 20, 2006

Army, 60th Infantry Deceased (KIA) March 7, 1967

In honor of his service

Arnold J. Goettig

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Veterans • November 2014 15

“I can’t sit down and talk about Vietnam and what happened to me and what I did and what I saw, but you see things.” ~Ted Lundrigan

Lundrigan had driven to Col. Redfern’s home where he was greeted by a golden retriever and a long-haired Dachshund. His time on Easy Street ended after the retriever knocked the Dachshund under the back tires of his jeep.

He first told the colonel’s wife, then he brought the dog to a veterinarian to see what he should do. When the veterinarian realized whose dog it was, he hid under his desk and kicked out Lundrigan.

“A week later I had orders to go to Vietnam,” Lundrigan said.

Lundrigan arrived in Vietnam with no place to go.

“I had no unit to which I was assigned. I just kept going north,” he said.

Lundrigan spent the next two years passed from unit to unit, almost always heading north. He was told they needed medics in the DMZ, or Demilitarized Zone. A unit of Army Rangers met him in Quang Tri and took him with them for a while.

Lundrigan said when he arrived the action was winding down. He spent most of his time on reconnaissance missions. Even during the slow times, the Vietnamese war was no cake walk.

16 Veterans • November 2014

He carried the same gear that every other soldier carried, except that he also carried medical supplies.

“You had your rucksack, which had your life in it. Then you had your aid bag and I used to take a bottle of plasma along with what they call a cutter kit. That’s a kit with a needle and tube.

I could take that off and use that one time, but if I had to use it that was necessary,” Lundrigan said.

When the Army Rangers were done with their mission, they left and Lundrigan was picked up by an artillery unit.

“That was where I spent most of my time along the DMZ and then when this operation came they called Lam Son 719. That was the invasion of Laos in ‘71. We invaded Laos to cut the Ho Chi Minh trail. My unit went on Route 9. At the time, Route 9 was a highway, but it leads across Vietnam into Laos,” Lundrigan said Lundrigan’s unit led self-propelled tracked vehicles carrying artillery to the border of Laos near an old village called Lao Bao. There, a plateau looked into Laos. They set up South Vietnamese soldiers on top of the bluff with artillery to fire against North Vietnamese troops and went down below. That’s where things got ugly.

“It turned out that ridge had caves in its face. In those caves were artillery pieces with the little people (North Vietnamese). We had the South Vietnamese on the top. The North Vietnamese in the caves, and us below,” Lundrigan said. “It wasn’t good. That was a real bad place.We took a lot of casualties right there.”

Lundrigan survived Lam Son 719, but not unscathed. Working around artillery led to major and permanent hearing loss, and Lundrigan mustered

out his obligation, completing it June 4, 1971. But he brought his nightmares home with him.

“I can’t sit down and talk about Vietnam and what happened to me and what I did and what I saw, but you see things. Sometimes they are so bad that you still see them, but your brain won’t let you think about what you are looking at,” Lundrigan said. “Otherwise I couldn’t do the job I was doing. To see people in pieces and horrific things like that. You can do the job if you just don’t think about it. You see them and you do the job. You do what needs to be done and they either fly away or they are put in a bag. One day that memory comes back.”

Lundrigan returned to the University of Minnesota to finish his degree in law.

In August 1974, Lundrigan passed the bar exam and became Pine River’s city attorney that same month. He worked in his father’s law firm, where he learned simple, yet effective advice.

“It’s a hard job. I enjoy my work. I practiced law with my dad for 14 years.

He had two words of advice in those 14 years. ‘Be useful.’ As long as I’m useful, here I am. He practiced law 55 years,” Lundrigan said.

Lundrigan led a life like many other people. He had children, he kept his hobbies, and for 40 years he held down a career as an attorney. At times, however, he still had to face memories from Vietnam.

“What I learned was it generally is triggered by music, smells like burning diesel fuel, sounds.

Helicopters are the worst. So, you can never be sure that you have that steel lid on top of that hole. Every once in a while it would come off,” Lundrigan said.

Lundrigan credits those who were close to him with his well-being, especially his second wife.

“If not for her I don’t know if I’d be alive ...” Lundrigan said. “She is such a steady influence. Such a gentle person.”

Though there were hard times, Lundrigan said he had it better than some.

“I never let it get that deep into me to control and let it run my life,” he said.

Like many veterans, Lundrigan avoids the triggers that can bring back old memories. There are reunions for veterans from the units where he served, but Lundrigan said he has only gone to one of them, in 2004, because being around people from his earlier life can be uncomfortable.

“There are some things you don’t want to remember, and if you don’t see these people associated with that, you don’t have to remember,” he said.

Lundrigan doesn’t revisit his past much. One of the few people from the war whom he keeps in touch with is Lt.

Kenny Prichard, the “one-eared” lieutenant.

“He got his ear shot off and I sewed it back on. I had nothing else to do. Later on I told him that I didn’t find the ear.

I said it was gone so I said I just found a camp dog, cut his ear off and sewed that on,” Lundrigan said.

Lundrigan will still tell little stories about the French villas of the mountains, the 10-foot tall elephant grass tied in tunnels above the roads and occasionally a victory story where he succeeded in saving a life.

Today, Lundrigan is an avid grouse hunter and bird dog trainer. He loves the hobby so much he’s been featured in magazines, newspapers and three books of his own writing. He said he is the “last rose on the bush” as far as attorneys in his family line are concerned.

While his kids have no interest in law, the same can’t be said for hunting.

One of his daughters was on the front

of the year 2000 Hunting and Trapping guidelines book for the state of Minnesota.

Lundrigan said war is horrible, but it is something you can survive and rise above.

“Some people can’t. Some of them I knew, but some of them can,” Lundrigan said.

Of course it helps if you have a good hobby, like grouse hunting.

“It’s therapy,” Lundrigan said.

TRAVIS GRIMLER can be reached at travis.grimler@pineandlakes.com. Follow him at facebook.com/PEJTravis and on Twitter @PEJ_Travis.

HONORING OUR NATIONS

HONORING OUR VETERANS

BRAINERD VFW POST 1647

309 S. 6TH STREET • 829-6393

OPEN AT NOON TUESDAY-SUNDAY

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HEROES ON VETERAN’S DAY

Veterans • November 2014 17

MiChaeL Lowe

riCharD CaMeron sr.

ron wooDs

Jay BruTsMan

Air Force, Vietnam

Army Air Corp, 1943-1945 WWII Deceased March 11, 2003

Army, 1958-1961

Army, Korea, 1954-1956

Duane hoeFs

GeraLD hoeFs

riCharD pauL kLein

Army

Army, WWII Deceased November 12, 2011

Navy, 1948-1952

CELEBRATING OUR VETERANS

LOUNGE HOURS

3PM MON.-FRI., Noon SAT.

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Large Selection of FREE Snacks & Goodies Happy Hour Prices & Second Drink is FREE For Veterans That Show Their Veteran's Card — ALL ARE WELCOME — Veterans Need Not Be A Member Monday is Taco Night Come and Have Fun with Us!

CROSSLAKE - HWY. 3

Kenneth Micko, Army, Air Corps 18 Veterans • November 2014

Thank you for letting us serve you so that we can continue to serve our veterans, military and community!

Thank you to all our military personnel for protecting our land and our freedom.

PO Box 974 Brainerd, MN 56401

TO THE AMERICAN MILITARY AND THEIR FAMILIES TO THESACRIFICE AMERICAN AND THEIR FAMILIES WHO SOMILITARY WE CAN ALL LIVE FREE… WHO SACRIFICE SO WE CAN ALL LIVE FREE… THANK YOU. THANK YOU. Veteran's Day Ad.2014.10.03.indd 1

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