Rochester’s VFW celebrates 100 years of veterans and history – Post Bulletin

ROCHESTER — The Veterans of Foreign Wars Post No. 1215 in Rochester celebrated its 100th anniversary this week and kicked off the momentous occasion Monday by holding a military ceremony at the gravesites of two Olmsted County veterans who died in the war and for whom the organization is named: Guy Whitlock and Carl Sonnenberg.

The cemetery prayers marked the start of a weeklong series of centennial community events for a post whose core mission is to “serve our veterans, the military and our community” and “advocate on behalf of all veterans.”

The celebrations will feature veterans breakfasts, bar bingo and raffles, a VFW golf tournament and live auction, music and karaoke performances, a Sloppy Joe dinner and spaghetti supper, a craft fair and bake sale, and polka dancing.

VFW member Harry Kerr said the Rochester VFW plays a significant role in contributing to the vitality and public health of the community. It has donated millions over the decades.

The VFW supported city parks and paid for lighting at Hudson Field. It made large financial donations to the Gift of Life Transplant House and donated food to the Zumbro Valley Mental Health Center. It helped establish the Rochester Honkers baseball club and the now defunct Mustangs senior hockey team. It financially supported youth athletics such as youth hockey and baseball. It advanced money to start youth activities such as wrestling and fast-pitch baseball.

The Rochester VFW was founded in 1924, 25 years after the national organization was founded. It was born organically amid a feeling that veterans were being neglected and forgotten.

After the Spanish-American War of 1898 and the bloody Philippine Insurrection (1899–1902), many veterans returned home wounded or sick. With no special medical care or veterans’ pensions at the time, veterans were left to fend for themselves.

They began to form groups that would come together and eventually form the United States Veterans of Foreign Wars.

In preparation for the Rochester VFW’s 100th anniversary, the group’s pastor, Dave Rowlands, has spent the past year researching the organization’s history.

“It’s not easy to sustain an organization for 100 years,” Rowlands said. “We’ve had our ups and downs,” and it’s a testament to the people who “kept it going over the years.”

The Rochester group began with 67 charter members. The post’s first meetings were held at the Rochester Armory under the command of William J. Pierce. At its peak, the post had a membership of 719 veterans. Today, it has about 400 members and its current commander is Mark Fetterman, Rowlands said.

The Mission has occupied nine different Rochester locations over the course of the century. Its current location, The Mess Hall Tavern & Grill on 43rd Street Northwest, formerly The Golden Corral restaurant, was purchased by the VFW for $820,000. It was renovated by Benike Construction for $1 million and a new 200-seat bar, restaurant space and event center were added.

These venues are intended to promote solidarity between veterans and community members, Rowlands said, and are places where people can relax, eat, gamble, socialize and hold meetings.

“The VFW is not just for veterans. It’s open to everyone,” Rowlands said.

Rochester Post is named for Olmsted County soldiers Guy Whitlock and Carl Sonneberg, both of whom died in battle, one on the battlefields of France, the other in the tropical Philippines.

Whitlock was 23 years old when he was killed in San Fernando, Philippines, on May 23, 1899, during what became known as the Philippine Insurrection, which took place after the Spanish–American War. The United States annexed the Philippine Islands, leading to resistance by Filipino nationalists and a guerrilla war in which widespread war crimes were committed on both sides.

Written on Whitlock’s tombstone in Stewartville Cemetery are these words: “Friends, I sleep sweetly in a soldier’s honored grave.

Sonneberg, of Rochester, was killed in France on September 28, 1918, during the final weeks of World War I. Private Sonneberg was shot by a German sniper near Vienne-Le Chateau Marne. His body lies in an isolated grave in the Maritime sector. He is commemorated, along with 953 other U.S. servicemen, on the “Wall of the Missing” at the U.S. Meuse-Argonne American Memorial, Romangne-sous-Montaucon, Loraine, France.

To bear witness to these sacrifices and countless others, VFW honor guards have become a fixture in Rochester at everything from college graduations to patriotic gatherings at Soldiers Memorial Field Park on Memorial Day and Veterans Day. They perform graveside services for veterans’ funerals. Once a week, they conduct rifle salutes and taps at the Minnesota State Veterans Cemetery in Preston, Minn.

Upcoming events to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Whitlock-Sonneberg Post No. 1215 of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Rochester. Except where noted, events are held at Mess Hall Tavern & Grill, 2775 43rd St. NW, Rochester:

Wednesday, September 4th
16:00 – 19:00 – Spaghetti Dinner.
17:00 – Horse Racing.
19:00 – Annual membership draw.
19:30 – Lifetime membership raffle.

Thursday, September 5th
18:30 – Bar Bingo.
19:00 – Annual membership draw.
19:30 – Lifetime membership raffle.

Friday, September 6
VFW Golf Tournament (Soldiers Field Golf Course)
10:30 – 12:00 – Registration.
Noon – Kick-off.
5:00 PM – 5:30 PM – Transfer to VFW Gold Star Room.
Messy Joe Dinner.
Silent Auction/Live Auction.
17:30 – Horse Racing.
20:00 – Orchestra.

Saturday, September 7th
11:00 – 16:00 – Handicraft Fair and Bakery Sales (Gold Star Room).
17:00 – Meat Trays.
17:30 – Horse Racing.
18:00 – $100 Raffle.
20:00 – Karaoke.

Sunday, September 8
Lunch – Polka.
15:00 – Three weapons will be distributed by raffle.
16:00 – 20-year time capsule.