Fort Snelling National Cemetery

On Thursday, May 20, 2021, with Memorial Day approaching, I spent some time at the Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minneapolis. There rests Colonel Joseph Howard Samuelson Jr., aka “Sam.”  

Colonel Samuelson was a truly respected Veteran who courageously served the nation in World War II, and during Korea and Vietnam. Like so many other Veterans, he became a critically important community leader in Minnesota as a teacher and coach. And he made an indelible impression on me as a young man in Stillwater, where he was our neighbor, fellow parishioner at St. Mike’s, and a football coach who influenced me greatly. 

I’ll never forget the time Colonel Samuelson visited our 10th grade assembly class and told us the incredible story of our how he and our Allied Forces landed on the beaches of Normandy on June 6, 1944, D-Day, scenes familiar to many Americans today because of the harrowing opening scenes of Saving Private Ryan. 

In assembly that day, Colonel Samuelson described the vicious fire from the German pillboxes defending the beach. He told us about jumping from his landing craft, sinking in the saltwater because of the weight of his gear, and bouncing up to get his head above water to catch some breath as he moved to shore. He told us about his fellow soldiers who died that day from a relentless hail of bullets on the bloody sand. And he told us how those Veterans helped defeat Nazi Germany.

I have never forgotten the lessons Colonel Samuelson taught me about courage, about self-sacrifice, and about honorable service to the nation.

This Memorial Day, may God bless Sam, his family, those serving America in uniform, and all our Nation’s Veterans. And may we always give them our very best.  

JOSEPH HOWARD SAMUELSON JR

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