Minnesota Humanities Center to Honor Woodbury Veterans

Two Woodbury men, Matt Schafer and Alex Tittle, are among 25 veterans from across the state who will be honored Sept. 11 during the Minnesota Humanities Center’s Veterans Voices award ceremony.

The program recognizes veterans for service to their communities.

Schafer

A Marine, Schafer works as the government relations director for the American Cancer Society in Minnesota.

He runs its advocacy campaigns—working on everything from consumer reforms to tobacco tax legislation and the Statewide Health Improvement Program (SHIP).

“The Marine Corp did a lot more for me than I ever did for them,” Schafer told Patch.

In the military, he said he learned responsibility, how to take the initiative and the value of a job well done.

“Those are the tools I learned there, whether it’s with the American Cancer Society or volunteering in the community,” he said.

Schafer said he was “flattered” to be nominated, and pointed to the teamwork of the ACS, including its success in Woodbury with the Cancer Prevention Study-3.

He hopes the Minnesota Humanities Center awards continue to shine a light on servicemen and -women who have gone on from the military to lead successful careers.

Tittle

Tittle, an Army veteran, has become a leader in Minnesota education, nonprofits and government.

Since leaving the Army, Tittle has led marketing and outreach efforts to “locate Minnesota veterans and veteran business owners through the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s Office of Civil Rights, helping secure legislative funding for these veterans,” according to a release.

Tittle is now the equity project manager for the new Viking stadium project.

He also coaches track and field for East Ridge High School.

The Program

“More than 60,000 Minnesotans have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, and there are more than 381,000 veterans of all wars residing in Minnesota,” reads a release from the Minnesota Humanities Center. “Adding their voices to public discussions is crucial to the democracy they have fought to preserve. The Humanities Center recognizes and is committed to the contributions of Minnesota veterans and will create new opportunities for veterans to speak in their own voice and connect with other Minnesotans.”

The Sept. 11 ceremony will be held at the group’s headquarters in St. Paul. The event launches a long-term, statewide program, Veterans’ Voices, which “uses the power of the humanities to bring the voices of veterans out of the shadows into the light. The Humanities Center focuses on bringing into public life the stories and experiences of people and communities that have been missing.”

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