This month is all about the veterans

Timing has a funny way of putting things into perspective. Just spend a couple of hours at the new and impressive Minnesota Military & Veterans Museum in Fort Ripley and read the accounts of Minnesota’s veterans dating all the way back to the Civil War. Snap back to November 2026, and discover how some of Minnesota’s veterans who served in recent wars are regaining outdoor freedom and mobility.

Thanks to the generosity of a paralyzed veteran and the efforts of Homeless & Wounded Warriors – MN and a company called TrackChair, 10 Minnesota veterans are getting back outdoors with powered track chairs. HWW–MN Chairman Russ Philstrom has been delivering the TrackChairs around the state, sharing firsthand how these veterans are returning to the woods, the trails and their deer stands — enjoying places they haven’t been able to reach in years and changing their perspective as well.

Freedom gets back on track

Russ Philstrom has logged many miles over paved roads lately, helping disabled veterans get back to the unpaved ones.

Philstrom, chairman of Homeless & Wounded Warriors – MN, has delivered 10 TrackChairs to disabled veterans across Minnesota. The motorized wheelchairs allow veterans to get back to the trails, woods and lakeside settings they had lost the means to enjoy. With a storage unit, truck and trailer, Philstrom is fulfilling the request of a late veteran who wanted to give the joy of the outdoors back to fellow veterans.

That late veteran is Michael J. Dubay, a paraplegic who enjoyed Sand Pine Pheasant Preserve in Avon. The owner of the preserve, Keith Sand, is also an authorized TrackChair dealer.

Dubay directed his financial adviser to use a significant portion of his estate to purchase TrackChairs for veterans and find an organization capable of putting them in the right hands. Then Homeless & Wounded Warriors – MN popped up in an online search.

“I was so shocked when I got the call, I was like, is this real?” Philstrom said. “Can someone actually put something like this together?”

About $160,000 purchased 10 TrackChairs. Philstrom and others then collaborated and identified veterans who could truly benefit from the chairs. From Palisade to Sauk Centre, and Montrose to Ely, Philstrom delivered chairs all over the state to men and women from various military branches, ranging in age from 41 to 91 years old. One recipient was Winnie Renner of Ely, a retired nurse who hasn’t been able to enjoy her favorite lakeside spot for many years.

“She said, ‘Russ, I made it all the way down to the water by myself. I hadn’t been there in years.’”

Another veteran was excited to deer hunt again this fall and even haul the deer with his chair. And one chair went to the Guardians 4 Heroes equine therapy program in Sauk Centre, where disabled veterans can navigate the pastures and rugged grounds and more easily interact with the horses.

Better yet, the chairs will serve more veterans for years to come. Each recipient has signed an agreement to return the chairs after they can no longer use them, so Homeless & Wounded Warriors – MN can pass them to the next veterans in need.

History in Uniform at the Minnesota Military & Veterans Museum

A walk through Minnesota’s new Military & Veterans Museum at Camp Ripley is really a walk through generations of service.

We visited the museum in October and followed Minnesota’s military story from the Civil War through the Spanish-American War, World Wars I and II, Korea, Vietnam, and the more recent conflicts. Displays of uniforms, equipment, photographs and personal artifacts help connect those eras to the Minnesotans who served in them.

The new museum also gave us something no display case could: the chance to meet and talk with veterans who were touring the exhibits alongside us. Hearing their stories added another layer to a place already filled with history.

With Veterans Day on Nov. 11, the timing felt especially fitting. The museum offers a powerful reminder that military history is not only about wars and dates. It is about people, service and the stories carried home. Learn more at https://www.mnvetmuseum.org/