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Urdahl seeks to restore flag holders for veterans
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CopyState Rep. Dean Urdahl, R-Grove City, is working to restore a state program which provides bronze star flag holders for the grave sites of military veterans.
The Minnesota Dept. of Veterans Affairs recently indicated it will discontinue issuing the flag holders to qualifying deceased veterans, allowing new bronze medallions offered by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to serve as markers.
Meeker County Veterans Service Committee members disagree with this decision on at least a couple of fronts and asked Urdahl to help remedy the situation. This week Urdahl issued a letter to state VA officials, urging them to consider restoring the flag holders.
One source of contention is, unlike the state's traditional bronze stars, the federal medallions are not designed to hold flags. Furthermore, the stars are reserved for special occasions such as Memorial Day and the Fourth of July. The medallions are displayed year-round.
"Our veterans put their lives on the line to protect America and we should ensure our country's flag is flown over their grave sites on patriotic holidays, " said Urdahl, who serves on a House committee pertaining to veterans affairs. "We acknowledge budgets are tight these days and some difficult decisions must be made, but we are asking veterans officials to take another look and see if there's a way to work this out."
Service clubs like the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars may continue providing bronze stars, but non-members are likely to be overlooked.
Copyright 2010 Tri-County News, Kimball, Minnesota. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from SmallTownPapers, Inc.
© 2011 Tri-County News Kimball, Minnesota. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.
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