Beyond the Yellow Ribbon Southeast Minnesota is focused on serving and supporting service men and women and their families who are currently serving on Active Duty or are in the National Guard or Reserves. No matter what branch of service, we are committed to helping those service members who live in Rochester, Olmsted County and the surrounding Southeast Minnesota region. Our motto is simply, "Serving Military families living in our midst."

Beyond the Yellow Ribbon Southeast Minnesota is part of the Minnesota National Guard Beyond the Yellow Ribbon Network. This network helps connect schools, local units of government, law enforcement, social services, churches, civic and volunteer organizations for the special needs of a military family before, during and after deployment. For more information about the Minnesota Beyond the Yellow Ribbon Network, go to www.btyr.org.

Welcome to Rochester!

Have you seen them yet? Rochester now has signage indicating a connection with Beyond The Yellow Ribbon!

The sign pictured here is at the north end of Highway 52, just before the 65th Street bridge.

Fishing Day, 2010, a Success!

On Sunday, July 18, 2010, our wonderful group from Beyond The Yellow Ribbon Southeast Minnesota got together with several area military families, and we fished!

This event was also attended by helpers from MinnAqua, a statewide education program designed to teach angling recreation and stewardship as well as the ecology and conservation of aquatic habitats. MinnAqua brought poles, reels, games, prizes and lots of excitement to our event. Thanks!

Here, District 29 Senator Dave Senjem and our Fishing Coordinator Jim Kehoe appear to be discussing the one that got away!

We received generous praise for our efforts, and we will definitely offer future events that are designed to bring together and support our military families. Our EVENTS page offers the next fun activity!

Memorial Day, 2010

Memorial Day... Decoration Day... Many traditions are kept alive by this important annual day of rememberance. Please remember to honor our fallen, fly your flag proudly and thank a veteran for their service when you can.

Thank you, Old Guard...

[July 22, 2010] - First Lady Mary Pawlenty Visits Rochester

Mrs. Pawlenty announces the next generation of the Military Family Care Initiative at the Rochester Armory on July 28th...[more News]

[May 20, 2010] - Minnesota National Guard Alerted for 2011 Deployment

At a press conference, on Thursday, May 20, 2010, 1st Brigade Commander Colonel Eric Kerska announced that approximately 2,700 Minnesota National Guard Soldiers will prepare to deploy in 2011, in support of Operation New Dawn, part of the U.S. drawdown phase of Operation Iraqi Freedom...[more News]

Special thanks to our Corporate Sponsors and Community Service Partners:

Corporate Sponsors:

• American Legion/Wm T. McCoy Post #92-Rochester
• Disabled American Veterans
• Elks Lodge #1091-Rochester
• Fraternal Order of Eagles Aerie # 2228 Zumbro
• Tee It Up For The Troops
• Think Bank
• VFW Post #1215

Community Service Partners:

• Family Service Rochester
• Rochester Technical & Community College
• Minnesota School of Business