DISABLED VETERANS REST CAMP ASSOCIATION INC

With so many Minnesotans affected by military duty in the past 18 years, more people are turning to the camp to be the provider of such outdoor activities in which they themselves cannot provide due to parental absence, emotional/ physical inability, or financial reasons. Veterans Campground is another venue where veterans can go when they want to connect with fellow veterans and families. Camp activities and programs include fishing, boating, gathering and picnicking at the Yellow Ribbon Pavilion, camping via RV, tent, and cabins, swimming, softball field, volleyball court, horseshoes, canteen with mini-library, youth game room, and snack bar, visiting the Veterans Memorial Garden, or hiking the Korean Trail.

This greater demand of our veteran community in Minnesota has required a large expansion of the camp, and financial support is greatly needed. While the camp focuses on veterans, it has also been fulfilling the recreational needs of many more, to include the families and friends of veterans who greatly assist with reintegration activities. They are all touched by military duty, and all are the beneficiaries of the camp.

The first phase of the camp's much needed expansion was the construction of 24 modern cabins that are handicapped accessible. With the assistance of the MN National Guard's 851st Engineer Company, 6 cabins were erected. Through a private grant, the 10 of the 12 original cabins (built in the 1930’s) have been either renovated or rebuilt to accommodate disabled veterans.

This fall, the camp will begin rebuilding its last two original cabins, which were deemed too deteriorated by inspectors to be renovated. The labor provided for renovating/ rebuilding all these cabins was by volunteers, many of them retired from the trades. Many other projects were completed by these citizen soldiers and volunteers, such as pouring concrete slabs for dumpsters, building a handicap porch and ramp for an existing cabin, repairing boat docks, widening doors on the existing shower house to facilitate wheelchairs, and installing fencing throughout the camp.

Completing the project of bringing the camp up to comfortable, safe, and quality accommodations and facilities is the current focus of the Disabled Veterans Rest Camp board of directors. These upgrading projects have resulted in the camp’s rental profits being put right back into the camp’s infrastructure. Having the camp available to future generations of veterans is what we are deeply committed to as a way of bringing our military men and women all the way home.