LUVERNE, M.N. (Dakota News Now). – The city Luverne removed banners on Main Street of its high school graduates that had been there since April. What would replace them was the question. Ultimately, they decided to honor the veterans of the region. Luverne may not be able fully to express our gratitude for those who have served the country in the military, but they are doing their best. They’re honoring 82 veterans and a long legacy of those who have served from Rock County.
Few people choose to serve in the military. According to the Soldier’s Project, less than one percent of the total U.S. population currently serves in the armed forces. To be precise, 0.727%. Luverne, however, is different.
“This community has a long, deep history of military service and that’s one of the things that I really love about Luverne and Rock County is the service-mindedness of this community,” explained a resident of Luverne and a veteran of the Vietnam War, Terrie Gulden. “We have a history that goes back to the civil war here in Rock County up through our current conflicts.”
Luverne, and Rock County as a whole, are proud of their patriotism. Ken Burns’ seven-part documentary on Luvurne was a special highlight for the filmmaker. The War. Herried Military Museum was built by the community as a place to share the stories about military service. Even a new Minnesota National Guard Armory has been built in Luverne.
Gulden was a boy who knew he would serve in the military. Like many Rock County residents, Gulden comes from a large family of military personnel. His father and uncles all served in World War II and World War I. Gulden was a Marine Corps corporal from 1966 to 1968. Gulden was the former commander of Rock County VFW, and is currently the curator of Herreid Military Museum. He wanted to serve for many different reasons.
”I think that’s what America is all about: it’s something bigger than me, not about me,” said Gulden. “It’s about serving others and serving the broader community that we have here and obviously if you’re serving in the military, you’re serving the nation, you’re not just serving yourself. This is very important to my life. Always will be. It’s important to serve something bigger than yourself.”
The idea to use the banners to honor veterans came from Luverne Area Chamber director, Jane Lanphere, and the Luverne Initiatives For Tomorrow, or “LIFT”, took it and ran with it. Mark and Annie Opitz both live in Luverne and are involved with LIFT. Mark serves on the LIFT Executive Board, and Annie sits on the LIFT Design Committee. The project received unanimous support from both Mark and Annie Opitz. The banners were also made by the production company they own, Quality Printing.
“We were really honored when we were asked to be a part of it,” said Annie. “We print all the banners. Jane had people fill out applications, get their information and photos and then bring them to us. It was so much fun watching them come out of the printer and seeing all the pictures, seeing the names of everybody, and seeing all who are veterans, some of them we weren’t even aware of.”
Annie said that due to the quality and age of the photos, it was hard for their team members to enlarge some of the pictures. It’s not something they haven’t done before, however. Quality Printing worked on a number projects for museums in Luverne including the Herried Military Museum. Mark, her husband, spoke about how special it is to work on these projects.
“Seeing that history and watching that come to life, it’s hard to put into words what that means,” Mark said. “I know living our dream as a business owner, we know that it is because of their efforts that it’s even possible that we get to do that.”
It is only natural that a mayor who lives in a city with a lot of military roots would also have spent his entire career in the military. Pat Baustian served in the Air Force from high school until 1987. He joined the South Dakota Air National Guard where he served until 2020. He was adamant that he would serve in the military from an early age. Both his grandpa, and his father served in the military. Many uncles from both sides of his extended family also served. All four of his children joined the military, and so did many of his wife’s family members. (One of Jack Baustian’s sons was honored with a flag on Main Street.) Pat Baustian, who comes from a family of military veterans, is proud to take part in this project.
“Our community has historically had a really strong presence of serving our country and that doesn’t come easy,” Baustian remarked. “To raise your right hand and say that you’re going to support the constitution of the United States, that’s a big oath. I believe that farming communities have a higher level of patriotism because we are more hard-working. It’s a part of the fabric of this community. It’s just the dirt that we’re made of.”
Everywhere you look, you’ll see a community proud of their history of service. These banners are a great way to express pride in the community and honor the people who traveled the less-traveled roads.
“Preserving those stories, and this is just one way to do that is to honor,” described Gulden. “Not that we’re trying to make anyone a hero because these guys never saw themselves as heroes. They were called to serve and that’s what we’re trying to continue to do putting these banners up.”
The banners will stay up through this Fall and the city currently has a waiting list for those who want their family members to be honored in next year’s banners. The city plans to display banners honoring veterans for many years. If you would like to apply to be added to the waiting list, contact the Luverne Area Chamber at [email protected].
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