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By Jon Tatting
editor.countynews@ecm-inc.com
“Isanti is a Minnesota county that encourages its military members and spouses, giving them peace of mind in knowing they have the appreciation, love and support of this community.”
Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty offered these words and more in proclaiming Isanti County one of the nation’s first “Yellow Ribbon” counties during a special summit Tuesday, Jan. 5 at Century College in White Bear Lake.
Pictured: Pictured with Governor Tim Pawlenty (left) during his Yellow Ribbon Summit are local resident and county commissioner Susan Morris; Isanti County Veteran Services Officer Jim Rostberg and his assistant Monica Broten; and Major General Larry Shellito, Adjutant General of the Minnesota National Guard.
The governor also proclaimed Washington County; the cities of Stillwater, Woodbury and Hugo; a church and companies such Cub Foods as “Yellow Ribbon,” which recognizes a community’s effort toward supporting service members and their families in time of deployment.
“He acknowledged that all of us, collectively, are here to support our deployed and returning service members as well as their families,” said Susan Morris, a county commissioner, who received the honor on behalf of Isanti County.
“To our deployed veterans, we will help you in any way we can. And we are committed to you and your families. You lay down your lives for us, the least we can do is support you,” she presented before a few hundred people who attended the summit.
Morris initially supported the concept here two years ago. Eventually, she, Isanti County Veteran Services Officer Rostberg and Bob Boone, retired MN Army National Guard Command Sergeant Major, organized an Isanti County Beyond the Yellow Ribbon Task Force.
The mission of the Isanti County Beyond The Yellow Ribbon Task Force is to support and inform Isanti County service members and their families throughout the entire deployment cycle so they are aware of the services available to them.
Members of the community can get involved by attending a meeting from 7-8:30 p.m. the third Thursday of the month at the Armed Forces Reserve Community Center—just south and across from the college—in Cambridge. The next meetings are set for Jan. 21 and Feb. 18.
For more information, contact the Isanti County Veterans Service Center at 763-689-3591 or email jim.rostberg@co.isanti.mn.us.
The statewide Yellow Ribbon campaign—led by Gov. Pawlenty, First Lady Mary Pawlenty and Maj. Gen. Shellito—strives to educate community leaders on how they can develop a network of support for service members and their families.
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