The Polk County Veterans Benefit Fair is returning after two years at the Crookston National Guard Armory on Friday, April 1, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. (and it is no April Fool’s joke either). The Fair is for veterans and their families to learn about benefits they and their families can receive for their service, but the Fair is open to the public to come as well, and admission is free to all. The Fair will also serve a free lunch for the veterans and their families, courtesy of the Irishman Shanty, which will be pulled pork and egg salad sandwiches for those participating in Lent.
According to Polk County Veterans Office member Kurt Ellefson, the Fair will have over 30 vendors with specific veteran benefits that veterans and veteran families can go to learn about and choose whatever benefit or benefits they wish to enroll for. “We have about 30 vendors coming, all of which have Veteran’s benefits that they specify with. Like Middle River Veterans Outdoors that takes veterans hunting and fishing.” Ellefson explained, “We have Minnesota Department of Veteran Affairs coming as well, where they talk about education benefits and grants for dental to optical service. Out of all the 30 vendors, they’re here to represent the benefits they have for veterans. So, people can come and go to the vendors they want to see and ask questions of what they get.” Ellefson claimed that they have around 30 vendors but says that if there are any veterans benefit vendors that would like to participate in the event, to let him know before the day of the Fair to see if he can fit them into the Fair. Certain vendors and booths will also be accepting donations for their organizations, such as the Vietnam Veteran Motorcycle Association out of Polk County for their events, as well as the Disabled American Veterans Organization and other vendors that will have donation requests throughout the Fair.
The current list of vendors is: Beyond the Yellow Ribbon, Chapter 14 DAV Post, Auxiliary, and DAV Transportation, County Veteran Service Officers, Crookston VFW Post, and Auxiliary, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, Fargo VA Health Care System with programs such as Suicide Prevention, Caregiver Support, My HealtheVet, Women Veteran Programs, and Medical Foster Home, and Veteran Administration Homeless Program. MDVA- Veterans Nursing Homes, Lutheran Social Service, Middle River Veterans Outdoors, MDVA/American Legion Regional Office, MDVA Education, ND Job Services, Polk County Social Services, Employers looking to hire Veterans, and many more.
Ellefson noted that while the event has been on an involuntary hiatus due to COVID-19, the event is coming back with more vendors than ever before and believes that this trend will continue into the future. “One thing I noticed is that in our last event in 2019, we had about 20 vendors, and this time we have 30.” Ellefson noted, “So, I’ve seen a big increase in vendors who want to be a part of this event, and I’m expecting that to grow every year. So, I’m thinking that every year that this event is going to keep growing.” Ellefson noted that not only has the number of vendors been growing over the years, but he expects the number of veterans to rise as well. Noting that in 2019, around 70 veterans came to the Fair and expects there to be as much if not more for this year’s event that are hungry to learn about the benefits they can receive. “Every Veteran’s a little different, so when a veteran walks into the door, they’re specifically looking for a certain vendor.” Ellefson explained, “So, I think that the Veterans love it, the ones that actually show and participate in them, they love it, and they always learn something new. I guarantee that if anybody comes to this event, you will learn one new thing about Veteran’s benefits. I guarantee it.”
The Polk County Benefits Fair will be held on Friday, April 1, in the Crookston National Guard Armory from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Admission is open and free to the public, especially veterans and their families. If you have any questions about the event or would like to be a vendor for the event, you can reach Kurt Ellefson and the Polk County Veterans Office at 218-281-3066.
