Sergeant Eli Brandt

After two tours overseas, Sergeant Brandt could have rested. Instead he opened the doors of a small VFW hall in Minneapolis and turned it into a lifeline. He drove veterans to appointments, sat with them through sleepless nights, and built a peer support group that has kept many of his brothers and sisters alive. He never talked about his own medals; he only talked about the next person who needed a ride or a meal or someone who understood. Generations of veterans in his city found their footing because Eli refused to leave anyone behind, then or now.