(KNSI) – The St. Cloud VA Healthcare system honors a central Minnesota woman who dedicated her life to helping those who served.
The main hall in Building Four has been named after Winnifred S. “Winnie” Galbraith. Winnifred’s daughter Wendy Dahl (right) made the trip from her home in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to attend Monday’s event and told KNSI News her mother would be proud of the recognition. “She would be blown away. She really would. She’d be thrilled. She’d be honored. It was all about respect for her. And so, this whole ceremony was so special.”
Winnie is a Paynesville native who graduated from Eden Valley High School and joined the Women’s Army Corps during World War II. She was awarded the World War II Victory Medal, the American Campaign Medal and the Woman’s Army Corps Service Medal. After the war, she served as Chaplain of American Legion Post 46 in Little Falls and was an active member of American Legion Post 428 in Waite Park.
Winnie’s name was recommended by a friend who worked with her at the Little Falls Legion. A panel of women veterans picked her out of 24 nominations. Wendy says her family was thrilled when they learned her mom was chosen. “I was very excited. Overwhelmed, really. I was thinking, wow, this is something. She would appreciate this. She would be so very proud to have her name honored in this way.”
Wendy says her mother was always an advocate for women in the armed forces, and she wore some of her mother’s jewelry for the occasion. “She was always 100% behind women veterans, and I’m wearing one of her bracelets today. So, a little bit of her is here.”
United States Executive Director for the Center for Women Veterans at the Department of Veterans Affairs, Lourdes Tiglao (left), sat down with KNSI News immediately after the ceremony and said that women veterans are the fastest growing group and deserve to be taken care of. “One of the things that we want to make sure that we’re responsive, and that we are creating an environment where women veterans feel safe and heard, and that they can trust the VA to find their care, find the services that they have rightfully earned.”
The dedication starts a year-long celebration honoring 100 years of service at the St. Cloud VA. The facility opened in September of 1924 and is one of only 31 World War I-era hospitals still in use.
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