Osseo-Maple Grove American Legion Post 172 Announces Memorial Day Speaker | Free

(FILE PHOTO BY ALICIA MILLER)

The Osseo-Maple Grove American Legion will be hosting two Memorial Day events, May 30.

(FILE PHOTO BY ALICIA MILLER)

The Osseo-Maple Grove American Legion will be hosting two Memorial Day events, May 30.

The Commander of the Osseo-Maple Grove American Legion, Larry Fonder, invites the community to commemorate Memorial Day.

Two ceremonies are scheduled for May 30 — one in Osseo and a second in Maple Grove. The Osseo ceremony will be at 10 a.m. at the Osseo Boerboom Veterans Park at Central Avenue and Fourth Street. The Maple Grove ceremony starts at noon and will be at the Maple Grove Veterans Memorial in Central Park.

“Everyone knows how to celebrate 4th of July, but many wonder how to commemorate Memorial Day – our ceremonies are the answer, please join us,” said Fonder.

The post has chosen one of its newer members, Kristy Janigo, to deliver remarks. She served in the Army National Guard from 2000 to 2006 as a Water Purification Specialist. She followed in the footsteps of her Grandpa Roland who served in the Army in Okinawa during WWII and her Uncle Ron who served in the South Dakota Army National Guard during the Vietnam War years.

“I kept the family legacy of Army service alive in my generation,” said Janigo.

She shipped to Basic Combat Training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, a mere two weeks after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Her military job can be described as operating a city water treatment plant that fits on a 30-foot truck bed. She left the military at the rank of E-5 sergeant.

Janigo is the Policy Director for Hennepin County Commissioner Kevin Anderson where she has helped secure funding for a county veterans’ monument, supported county efforts to become a Beyond the Yellow Ribbon employer, increased the size of the county veterans service office, and facilitated connections with the nonprofit Minnesota Assistance Council for Veterans (MAC-V) for the sale of tax forfeited land to build supportive housing for local homeless veterans.

She is an advocate for veterans and an active member of the Osseo-Maple Grove American Legion. As the post legislative chair and media and communications chair, she leads efforts to lobby state representatives on veterans’ issues, manages the monthly newsletter, and even serves on the post’s color guard. She also travels statewide as part of the American Legion Department of Minnesota Media and Communications Committee to raise awareness of the Legion mission and rally support for veterans everywhere.

Janigo lives in Maple Grove with her husband Chip where she is involved in a variety of community service projects and volunteering.

“I feel it is my responsibility to speak up for those who still cannot put into words what happened to them during their service and those who died protecting our freedoms,” said Janigo.

May 30, 1868, was designated for the purpose of decorating the graves of those who died in defense of their country during the latter part of the Civil War, whose bodies now lay in cemeteries across the country. May 30 was selected as the day of the observance because flowers would be in bloom all over the country, not just in the warmer regions. By the end of the 19th Century, Memorial Day ceremonies were being held on May 30 throughout the U.S. States passed proclamations, and the Army and Navy adopted rules for proper observance at their facilities.

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