Fort Snelling Memorial Rifle Squad

In 1977, George J. Weiss Jr. was a member of the Fourth District Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) in Minesota. When a good friend who had served in the U.S. Air Force died, the Mendota VFW Post asked Weiss to organize a rifle squad for the veteran's funeral. Weiss got six men together to perform the ceremony to honor the man.

"We did an amateur presentation," said Weiss in a recent interview. He was getting ready to retire and wanted to do something with his leisure time. "Remembering the service for my friend, I thought we needed a better memorial ceremony for all veterans," he said. That's when he decided to organize a rifle squad to serve at military funerals at Fort Snelling.

The director and cemetery committee at Fort Snelling National Cemetery in Minneapolis supported the idea. Weiss, a former Marine who had served in China in 1945-46, called a meeting to be held at the Veterans Administration hospital in Minneapolis. Some 200 men attended the first meeting. Just 100 were at a second meeting, and only eight at the third. Finally, in 1979, six dedicated men organized the Memorial Rifle Squad for the Fort Snelling National Cemetery. Members were veterans of the Army, Navy, Marines and Air Force.

The six men voted to start with a squad that would be available on Tuesdays. They began perfecting their presentation. The squad had to borrow weapons before they could meet military burial standards. A squad member from American Legion Post 435 of Richfield, Minn., obtained seven 1903 bolt-action Springfield rifles, standard U.S. Infantry weapons from World War I and an ideal rifle for the squad's service.

When the rifle squad was organized, the Military Order of the Purple Heart, Chapter 5, donated $3,000 to purchase the necessary winter equipment. Without that help, it is doubtful whether the rifle squad could have survived the first winter. For nine years, the Military Order of the Purple Heart continued to outfit every new member. The cost of a uniform ranges up to $500. Each outfit includes two pairs of black trousers, long- and short-sleeved shirts, belts, gloves, black ties, and summer and winter jackets. The squad owns black raincoats and black parkas in a variety of sizes to accommodate all members for every type of weather. Each member also wears the cap of the veterans' organization to which he belongs.

In the winter of 2004, one family thanked the volunteer rifle squad for honoring a member of its family, stating, "Even though the temperature was 25 below, and the wind chill was 40 below, the squad performed a beautiful ceremony." The rifle squad operates on donations from veterans' organizations and families of the deceased.

The first three funerals at which the rifle squad appeared were held on June 19, 1979. After that, the rifle squad worked toward getting another group to be available on Fridays. Next, a unit was formed for Thursdays, and eventually there was a rifle squad for every day of the week, Monday through Friday. A $45,000 bus to transport the men around the cemetery was paid for by veterans' organizations.

Individual teams may attend as many as 16 funerals a day in a four-hour period between 10 A.M. and 2 P.M., with services scheduled every 15 minutes. Squad members arrive at 9 A.M. to prepare for the services. A staff member at Fort Snelling gives the team a computer printout of material for each of the deceased, including the name of the veteran and the time and location of the funeral within the cemetery.

The squad goes to the burial site before the family arrives. When the casket is removed from the hearse, the squad presents arms and then performs the military ritual. Five men form the color guard, which carries two chrome rifles, the U.S. flag, the Department of Veterans Affairs flag and the service banner of the deceased veteran. Seven riflemen fire three volleys, creating a 21-gun salute. A bugler blows taps. Two members of the color guard fold the American flag and present it to a family member. The squad then silently departs for the site of the next funeral.

George Weiss served as the first commander of the squad, and has been the Friday squad leader since the beginning. He travels 95 miles round trip from his home in Marine on St. Croix to Minneapolis each Friday to serve on the rifle squad. Members of all five squads travel a total of 3,300 miles every week to get to the Fort Snelling National Cemetery.

There are 17 or 18 men on each daily squad, with members representing all five branches of service. Any honorably discharged veteran is eligible to become a member. New volunteers learn of the program through articles in local newspapers and in veterans' publications and by word of mouth. They are required to register at the Voluntary Services Office at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center. Veterans from World War II, Korea and the Persian Gulf War take part. Few members ever quit the squad. At present there are 120 members of the team. The average age is 72 years. When a member dies, his name is engraved on a memorial plaque at Fort Snelling Cemetery. The plaque now carries 109 names.

On Memorial Day 2001, the rifle squad was featured in a four-minute program on WCCO TV, Twin Cities. The program received national attention as the Fort Snelling squad was the only such organization in the country. The program and photojournalist Tom Avlies were awarded an Emmy. After the show aired, the rifle squad was contacted by many veterans organizations across the country with requests for information on military burial honors. The Joliet, Ill., area American Legion and VFW invited commander Weiss and chaplain Gene Schultz to visit the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery there. The men spent two days in Joliet describing the Fort Snelling program. A rifle squad, which served on Tuesdays, was established at the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery. In May 2004, Weiss was invited to return to Joliet for the graduation of the newly trained Friday squad. When the Minnesota Rifle Squad purchased new parkas, they sent their old ones to the unit in Illinois. The Lincoln National Cemetery Rifle Squad hopes to add another unit this summer. In recent years, at least five such rifle squads have been formed to serve at national cemeteries, all inspired by the Fort Snelling Memorial Rifle Squad.

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