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A former Luverne resident is asking Rock County residents to share their stories for a special Minnesota exhibit called the “Post-9/11 Project.”
Linda Cameron is encouraging residents to record what occurred in Rock County from Sept. 11, 2001, and in the 19 years since terrorists hijacked commercial airliners and attacked the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
Submissions are accepted through June 2021.
“The goal of the project is to look at the impact of the horrific events of that day through a Minnesota lens — how those events have changed life in Minnesota and of Minnesotans — both servicemen and women, and civilians — since that fateful day,” she said.
The self-submissions from local service members and civilians about America’s longest war is being completed for next year’s 20th anniversary of the hijackings and the U.S.’s entry in the global war on terror.
The Post-9/11 project is the largest initiative taken by the Minnesota Military Museum and Library. The museum is partnering with the Minnesota Department of Veteran Affairs, who established the 9/11 and Global War on Terrorism Remembrance Task Force.
Cameron worked on ‘Minnesota’s Greatest Generation Project’
Cameron is a contracted historian for the museum and is the program manager for MNopedia, a digital encyclopedia of Minnesota history.
Story collection around an historic era is not a new project for the Minneapolis resident.
Cameron worked with the state’s historical society on Minnesota’s Greatest Generation Project and completed a presentation in Luverne more than a dozen years ago.
“The Minnesota’s Greatest Generation project was a story-sharing project, and my job was to reach out to members of that generation and encourage them to share their Depression, WWII, and post WWII stories for our website,” Cameron said.
“My work with MNopedia gave me the opportunity to research and write, and to develop good contacts with local and county history organizations, which are the heart of the Post-9/11 project. We are hoping to get stories from all over the state of Minnesota.”
All submissions will be included in a permanent collection at the state’s military museum and library.
After receiving the submissions, the Post-9/11 Project will make a documentary film, publish history and make available a speaker’s bureau and monthly online programs to be announced on the library’s website, www.mnmilitarymuseum.org.
Cameron spent elementary years in Luverne
Cameron’s interest in history spans more than 28 years, when she became a historian.
Her initial spark came in Luverne as an elementary student in the late 1960s. She and her late parents, Bill and Marjorie Cameron, lived in Luverne until she was 10, when the family moved to Paynesville. Her dad was an avian pathologist.
“I’ve always been fascinated by the context of history — why things happened the way they did,” she said. “I’ve especially enjoyed studying local and state history.”
Cameron carried a little bit of Luverne history in her heart, starting with a trip to the Hinkly House Museum.
“I especially loved playing on the stone lions out in front of the museum with my grade school friends,” she said.
Other memories include watching the Tri-State Band Festival from her grandpa Earl Cameron’s apartment above the Main Street bakery, biking to the outdoor swimming pool and city park, and hiking at Blue Mounds State Park.
“I especially loved our old house (214 W. Dodge St.), which was built in 1939 by my Cameron grandparents,” she said.
How to submit stories for the Post-9-11 project
Due to the war’s length, entire units of the state’s citizen-soldiers enlisted in the Reserves, Air and National Guard units have been deployed overseas, placing tremendous strain on families.
The Luverne-Pipestone National Guard unit was among those deployed, and Cameron is interested in capturing those remembrances.
She suggested the following topic ideas:
•How did communities in your area respond to the attacks immediately afterward? Was there heightened security in your area? Other changes?
•Have local residents served in the resulting Global War on Terror? What are their stories?
•Has your community held events to remember 9-11 over the years since? Some examples might be annual firefighter fundraisers, prayer services, concerts, creating a memorial, etc.
•Pictures relevant to the stories should also be submitted.
Stories can be written or videotaped memories and submitted to https://www.mnmilitarymuseum.org/exhibits/test-gallery/share-your-story/ through June 2021.