History of Norcross Veterans Memorial is etched in stone

BY C. A. RAY

Grant County Herald

The Norcross Veterans’ Memorial was placed in the Norcross Park on August of 2004. Cost was $5,900.00. Fergus Monument Company was the supplier. The monument was inscribed with 111 names. Norcross American Legion Post 410 paid for it. Billy Olhoft, Jerry Amundson, Luther and Joycelyn, Thompson and Arlene Grob were the movers and shakers behind the project. Billy, Jerry, and Luther were Post 410 members, Joycelyn and Arlene were auxiliary members.

The names are not in alphabetical order. Names were added as they popped into the heads of the committee members. Billy died shortly after completion in 2005 and Arlene died in 2017. Thankfully, Luther and Jocelyn are still alive and kicking as of this 2022 writing.

American Legion Post 410 officially closed in 2007. They did not merge with Herman Legion Post 378.

In 2018, 11 names were added to the monument at a cost of $515.00. Veterans added were: David Amundson, John Amundson, Lynn Carlson, Roland Davis, Clint Larson, Gordon Lennox, Robert Rarer, Michael Tolifson, Richard Trollier, Jacob Veldhouse, and Larry Vipond.

The Norcross Community Cultural Center paid the $515.00 as Legion Post 410 was no longer an entity.

Of the 122 names on the monument, 94 are deceased and 28 are living as of June 1, 2022. Wally Lubben is the oldest living veteran. He is 97 years old and lives in the veteran’s home in Fergus Falls. The youngest is Jacob Veldhouse, he is 40 years old and lives in Wheaton.

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