Filling The Ranks
By Curt Brown
Kevin Olson, Deputy Director for the Minnesota Military & Veterans Museum
LONGTIME NATIONAL GUARD SPOKESMAN TAPPED AS DEPUTY DIRECTOR
Kevin Olson’s mother, Shirley, told him how she looked up at age 9 as the skies blackened over her British family’s home on June 6, 1944. Roaring American planes blotted out the sun, providing air support for the D-Day invasion of Normandy. Eighty years later, Olson stepped across the sand between Omaha and Utah Beaches, gazing up at the rugged, windswept cliffs of Pointe du Hoc — where the Nazis dug in on D-Day.
On that 80th D-Day anniversary trip last spring, Olson’s mind flashed to stories of Minnesotans involved in that historic turning point of World War II. Wadena’s Ralph Yeager helped secure the beachhead with the 82nd Airborne Division Artillery. Brandon’s Muriel Kappler nursed wounded soldiers at the 42nd Field Hospital along the Normandy Coast. And Anoka’s Charles (Ace) Parker and his 5th Ranger Battalion clawed up the cliffs through fierce combat, tumbling rocks and grenades.
“They demonstrated unparalleled courage and I want to use this new, tremendous opportunity to amplify the life and legacy of all the Minnesotans who served in our military,” said Olson, 59, a longtime Minnesota National Guard spokesman who became the new deputy director of the Minnesota Military and Veterans Museum on July 1.
“I’m honored to join the Minnesota Military and Veterans Museum as Deputy Director and help lead the next chapter in preserving and sharing the stories of our service members, veterans and military families,” he said.
Olson, 59, acknowledges the “leadership luminaries” who helped turned the tides on D-Day, but he’s equally excited to retell the tales of Yeager, Kappler, Parker and countless other “invisible, everyday” soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines from Minnesota whose commitment to service punctuates state history.
In his new position, Olson will serve in a critical public outreach role, connecting Minnesota veterans and military leaders with the greater civilian community through the revamped museum. Doors open next summer at the newly expanded, $30 million, 40,000-square-foot Minnesota Military and Veterans Museum at Camp Ripley between St. Cloud and Brainerd.
Olson technically retired from the National Guard in 2017 after 31 years. “But in the military, your uniforms might change but you never really retire,” he said. “You evolve.”
And the next step in that evolution finds Olson helping share the stories of Minnesota’s military contributors — the latest chapter in distinguished career steeped with service. Olson comes from a family with a rich military tradition.
“This mission is deeply personal to me,” said Olson, the youngest of five siblings. “My own family has worn the uniform across every branch and I’ve dedicated my career to honoring those who serve.”
Olson’s father, Jerry, served in the Korean War-era Air Force and met his wife, Shirley, while stationed in England. Her father, Private Alfred James Dennis, served in the British Home Guard as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal specialist during WWII bombings in England.
“One of my most prized possessions is an official certificate signed by King George VI (Queen Elizabeth’s father), acknowledging Pvt. Dennis’ service during WWII,” Olson said.
His oldest brother, Allen, was born at a Royal Air Force base in England while two other siblings joined the U.S. military: sister, Lorraine, served in the Navy during the Cold War and brother, Greg, was a Vietnam-era Marine.
“My family talked about the importance of service every single day,” Olson said.
He sandwiched his three-decade National Guard career between stints in the private sector — spending a dozen years with Marriott Lodging in its convention business before entering Active Guard Reserve status. After his 2017 military retirement, Olson launched SnowGlobe Public Relations — a firm whose clients include Cargill, Minnesota’s Special Olympics and the state’s Building and Construction Trades Council.
Between those private sector gigs, Olson spent most of his life immersed in the military — culminating his career as a Colonel and communications director for the Minnesota Army and Air National Guard. He spent 14 years as the Guard’s principal spokesman in St. Paul. For Minnesota media members, Olson’s was the face of the National Guard. He advised three Adjutant Generals and coordinated media relations, internal communications, social media and crisis response for a force numbered at 13,000 members in 61 Minnesota communities.
Olson deployed twice to Iraq, serving as Public Affairs Operations Officer for a Multi-National Corps in Baghdad in 2005- ’06 and then again in 2009- ’10 as a Public Affairs Officer for the 34th Red Bull Infantry Division out of Basra.
“I would be responsible for communicating all the activities of a 15,000-person multinational military force – including 1,200 Minnesotans – as we commanded the activities in nine of Iraq’s provinces during combat,” he said.
He racked up myriad awards along the way, including the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, and Joint Service Commendation Medal. In 2022, he was inducted into the Minnesota National Guard Court of Honor.
Olson earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Framingham State University in Massachusetts and a master’s degree in organizational leadership from Concordia-St. Paul, where he taught graduate-level courses in strategic communication as an adjunct professor.
His education background features other impressive accomplishments: Olson is a Policy Fellow at the University of Minnesota’s Humphrey School of Public Affairs and he’s earned professional certificates in Strategic Communication from the Naval Postgraduate School and in Government Relations from Georgetown University.
As President of the General John W. Vessey, Jr. Chapter of the Association of the United States Army, Olson spearheads a 9,000-member group dedicated to supporting soldiers and advocating for America’s Army.
His community works includes serving on the board of the Friends of the St. Paul Library and Serving Our Troops, a civic organization that has delivered more than 110,000 steak dinners to deployed service members and their families the last 20 years.
Olson lives with his wife, Christine, in Scandia, where they love canoeing the St. Croix River and snowshoeing nearby. They’re both master gardeners.
And now, Olson will turn his passion to cultivating and tending to the stories of Minnesota’s military members as the new Deputy Director of the Minnesota Military and Veterans Museum.
“From the front lines of Iraq to community engagement here at home, I’ve seen firsthand the power of storytelling to educate, inspire, and unite,” Olson said. “I’m excited to help bring those stories to life for Minnesotans and visitors alike as we build a world-class museum at Camp Ripley.”