The Saint Paul globe., 1905-04-23
STORY OF THE MINNESOTA JUNIOR
PIONEERS AND THEIR WORK in STATE

1860 and were at that time under the
age of 81 years, was called.
Organization Perfected
She meeting was held in the munic
ipal court room in the basement of
the court house on the evening of Aug.
13, 1889. William l.. Benson presided
and the meeting was exceptionally
we'll attended and Immediately devel-
oped a spirit most cordially inclined
to the launching of the Junior Pio-
neers association. A constitution and
a set of bylaws had been prepared,
were submitted, and Immediately
made necessary by the onward march
of time, they stand in force today as
they were then.
Then an election of officers was held
and resulted In the following selec-
tons: President, Edward c. Starkey;
first vice president, William L. Ben
| sen: second vice president, Peter Jo-
seph Dries; secretary, Charles w. Spiel;
treasurer, Eugene J. Stilwell; board OF
| directors, Charles Friend Jr., Fred g.
Ingersoll William sO'Gorman, Henry
G. Haas and Edward Dahl.
The preliminary meeting, history OF
which has Just been recorded, adjourn
ed with the best spirit of good fellow
ship existing among the charter MEM
UGIS anu Will tdCli pOSSCoSC0 VI Gil as
scciation enthusiasm which instead of
lessening with the growing bridge of
years, seems eternally growing in
strength. An active campaign for
membership was begun and soon the
association was upon a footing which
left no ground on which to base fears
for the future.
Care for Each Other
Immediately after the permanent or
ganization was affected the association
began it's charitable work. 1t is in
this charitable work. little of which
the outside world ever hears, that the
Junior Pioneers have thus far done
their greatest work. Since the organ
ization of the association in 1889 the
proud boast of the members has been
that no Pioneer Junior has ever suf-
fered from want of care and attend
ance in illness or misfortune. There
is no stipulated sick relief fund, no
burial benefit. When member is in
distress the committee appointed for
the purpose of caring for such cases
gives to it their individual attention.
They see that that member or his
family wants for no comfort during the
existence of the trouble: When II is
all over the incident is forgotten, save
to the member so aided. His name is
never published even in the associa-
tion meeting room, let alone In the
outside world.
While believing in, and consistently
practicing the doctrine that charity
should begin at home, the charitable
works of the association have by no
means been confined to the limits of its
membership. When the call for help
came to the outside world from the suf-
ferers in the great Hinckley fire one
of the first contributions to reach the
impoverished city was a remittance of
5000 from the Junior Pioneer associa-
ton of st. Paul. The same condition
held good in the Galveston flood disas-
ter, at the time of the tornado last fall,
and in the instance of every call for
aid which has come from sufferers in
the great disasters Of the past decade
and a half.
Public Spirited Men
And, withal a spirit of lofty national,
state and civic patriotism permeates
every action of the pioneers. The Deco
ration day parade each year sees the
Junior Pioneer association, several
hundred strong, marching in the line Of