Celebration to honor veterans

In honor of America’s 250th birthday, to be celebrated July 4, its semiquincentennial, the Pioneerland Band Festival committee announced that the area’s veterans would be honored as the grand marshals of the parade.

The veterans color guard will lead the parade, and other veterans will be on the float in the parade. Some veterans will be on the lawn at the Swift County Courthouse.

The parade is set to begin at 6:30 p.m., Friday, June 12, and will follow the traditional parade route beginning on west U.S. Highway 12 by Runnings and Lake Central Bank proceed east on Minnesota Avenue (U.S. 12), then turn north on 14th Street North and go to the Benson High School.

Bands that have confirmed they are coming include:
Yellow Medicine East
Albany
Montevideo
Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg
Patriots Marching Band*
Litchfield
Bemidji
Fergus Falls
Waconia
Buffalo
*The Patriots Marching Band has members from St. Anthony Village and Spring Lake Park high schools in the Twin Cities.

From Gary Mills
Swift County Historical Museum director
The Semiquincentennial marks the 250th anniversary of the United States’ founding, specifically the 1776 adoption of the Declaration of Independence. Unlike earlier anniversaries such as the Bicentennial in 1976, this milestone is not tied to a single event but to the ideological moment when the colonies asserted their right to self-governance.
Historically, the U.S. has marked major anniversaries with national celebrations. The 1826 Golden Jubilee coincided with the deaths of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson, but no major observance was held. The 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia, the 1926 Sesquicentennial Exposition, and the 1976 Bicentennial all reflected evolving national identity and political climates. 
The Semiquincentennial, however, arrives at a time of heightened civic reflection, as Americans debate democracy’s inclusivity, the meaning of equality, and the nation’s contested ideals. This celebratory event is more than a ceremonial date; it is a call for all Americans to engage with history – at home and around the country - as a living framework for understanding the present and shaping the future. 
This year’s celebration planning began in 2016 with the U.S. Semiquincentennial Commission (America250), a congressional, nonpartisan body to coordinate events and encourage public participation and the development of local celebratory events. National events have included or will include the Army 250th Anniversary Parade (June 14, 2025), the Great American State Fair at the National Mall, OpSail 2026, Times Square Ball drop 2026, and the Freedom 250 Grand Prix. 
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will also feature matches July 4.
Local celebratory events include the Memorial Day Remembrance events, the 39th Pioneerland Marching Band Festival June 12 and the county-wide Roosevelt Park Independence Day Celebration July 2. It also included the Historical Society Chorale 250th Anniversary Concert on which was June 7.

A Brief History of
 Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1403
By former VFW Post 1403 Commander Bob Cook 
The Benson VFW received it’s Congressional Charter in 1932. At that time, there were about 13 charter members. Over the years, the Post had several names. Swift County VFW, Simon Peterson VFW, and currently Benson VFW Post 1403.
The original members met in a building at  Atlantic Avenue. The Post then moved to 1135 Pacific Avenue (its current location) sometime around 1941. Its bar/club operation opened about the same time.  
Then about 1968 it expanded its operation and built the addition just to the east of its current location.  This consisted of a basement that contained a bar and a kitchen and a hall, and an upper level which also had a kitchen, bar and a dance floor. 
Years later, when smoking was still legal in bars and restaurants the members voted to purchase a portion of the Swift County Monitor-News building to the west and designated it as a non-smoking room. Shortly after this the state instigated the no smoking regulation for businesses and public buildings.
For many years, the Post’s income was strictly from donations, raffles, and a very popular monthly steak fry. Then in 1985, the Post acquired charitable gambling. This went over very well and helped defray many expenses, as well as them make contribution to local schools, charities and events. 
Just prior to the COVID-19 pandemic in June of 2019, the Post and club were holding their own but hiring help for the kitchen and bar became a real issue. Also, with many of the members well into their 70s volunteer help for maintaining the operations became an issue. The Post voted to sell the building. The new owners allowed them to maintain storage space and an office in their bar and the VFW still maintained gambling at the site. 
The Minnesota Gambling Control Board was created in 1984 and began systematically issuing formalized organization licenses state-wide in 1985. VFW Post 1403’s official state License 00377 places it directly within that very first, earliest wave of 1985 licensees.
The gambling operation still thrives, and they still contribute substantially to the community. The Post still holds its monthly meetings at what is now Track Bar and Grille.

Membership
From its humble beginnings in 1932, membership continued to grow. World War II, along with the Korean and Vietnam wars, all contributed to an increase in membership. Over the years there have been over a thousand members in the Post. 
In the past 20 years membership has declined considerably. An aging population and the fact that there have not been any wars the likes of WW II, are the main reasons. The Post now has 132 members.
Recently the Post has been getting some younger members that are showing an interest in the Post who are veterans of the Middle East military campaigns. 
There are now six branches of the military.  Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and now the Space Force.  With the exception of the Space Force, the other five branches of the service have at one time or another been represented at Post 1403.
Post 1403 still has an active Auxiliary, comprised of both men and women, who meet monthly at the same time as the Post - the second Monday of the month. 
The Post still works along with The American Legion and provides military honors for deceased veterans.