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March 2025 - President Dave Miller

Welcome to the Minnesota State Lodge Fraternal Order of Police website.  I hope you will find what you are looking for from us.  Our site contains upcoming events, important documents and benefits information, as well as several editions of our State magazine.  It has been a busy start to 2025.  We had a quarterly State meeting in Mankato hosted by Lodge #16.  Then I was off to Washington DC on a last-minute request to attend FOP National Day on the Hill.  FOP members from across the country were in DC lobbying our congressional members on the top priorities of the FOP.  Our main goal for the past 40 years has been to repeal the GPO/WEP and restore our full social security benefits.  We accomplished this just before the end of the session.

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Trustee Marichalar and I recently returned from the National Board of Trustees meeting in Salt Lake City.  The host of the 2027 National Convention.  It appears that there are at least 9 amendments to be voted on in Miami. 

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The Spring Conference for the Minnesota State Lodge will be April 20th-22nd, 2025 at Grandview Lodge in Nisswa Minnesota.  We hope for a big turnout as we also have 5 bylaw amendments to consider.  Each local lodge president received an email with the link to reserve a room.  Please do so by April 4th.

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Thank you for reading and being a part of the national’s largest police organization.

 

March 2024 - President Dave Miller

As March is going out like a lion, I have found the time to add a new message.  Thank you for taking your time to check us out.  We are preparing for our Spring Annual Board Meeting.  The meeting will again be at Grandview Lodge April 21st - 23rd 2024.  I am pleased to announce the National President Pat Yoes, National Sgt@Arms Steve James and Chairman of the Trustees Rob Pride have indicated they will be attending our meeting.  President Yoes is also going to present an hour presentation on Effective Leadership.  I have reached out to several of the approved vendors, and I have received promotional materials from all that I have contacted.

I am again reminded to encourage all active and retired law enforcement officers to look at our legal defense plan options.  In the past few weeks, I have received calls from officers looking for coverage for an incident that has happened.  Like any other coverage, our plan does not have a post incident plan that can be purchased.  Please look for a plan for you and protect yourself.  During this attack on police, no one is immune from prosecution, even if you believe you are following your policies and state law.

Look for our State FOP Magazine to be published in the first week in May.  An electronic version will be available on our website.  We will have lots of new information about Police Week and member benefits for you.  
As always, stay safe!  

 

January 2024 - President Dave Miller

Welcome to our website.  We are constantly working on improving what we are offering on our website.  If you take the time to look around, you will find information from our National Trustee about all the activities happening at the Grand Lodge.  It is the time of the year when most of the National training happens.

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We just finished our winter state board meeting in Duluth.  Lake Superior Lodge #9 was our host.  We started with a tour of the First Responder Center and learned of the services that are offered to first responders in time of need. We saw 40 members attend the meeting.  We covered a lot of topics.  Look for the meeting minutes to be posted soon.

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We are opening our Legal Defense Plan coverage to lawyers and firms that may be interested in serving the needs of our members through our Minnesota State plan.  Please go to the Legal Defense Plan tab to review the request for proposal attachment.  If you have an attorney who you think would serve our members well, please ask them to review and submit a bid.

 

We are scheduled to send members to Day on the Hill in March.  This year is the best chance we have had of repealing the WEP/GPO.  This would increase members’ social security benefits that are currently limited.  There are other issues that our members will meet with our congressional representatives to look for support.  The National Spring Board meeting will be held in San Diego CA in March.  April will bring the Western States meeting as well as our State Conference. I will also be recruiting new members in Marshall MN on April 20th at the Law Enforcement Swap Meet.

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As always, please reach out to the Board Members if you have any questions or issues.  We are always looking for locations who would like a presentation on what the FOP offers or what is needed to charter a local lodge.

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November 2023 - President Dave Miller

Fall is gone, and snow is flying.  Time to look forward to the events of winter.  I know many of       our members enjoy skiing, snowmobiling, and ice fishing (Lodge #8).  A lot of the retired members make trips south to enjoy your winters in warmer weather.  Remember, as a Minnesota FOP member, you are always welcomed at any Lodge in the South too.  Bring your FOP card and check out some of the Lodges in our southern States.

 

For those of us staying north, here’s a few things we are working on.  The month of October brings renewal time.  If you have not paid your lodge dues as of November 1st, you are not an active member.  Please make sure you are current as this could impact your legal defense coverage.  Val has been very busy making changes to our State and National Legal Defense plans.  Everyone should have received a letter in July and an email in October explaining the changes in payment and coverage.  Please take the time to ensure you are covered. 

 

At the October meeting in St. Joseph, the membership approved our budget for 2024.  This was my first attempt at creating a budget. I want to thank the membership for their patience with me and supporting the changes made.  I think we are in a good place with spending, but revenue could be increased through growth.  If you are not a member and are interested in joining, or even chartering a new lodge, please let us know.  We are looking to southwest Minnesota for expansion.  It only takes 10 active members to start your own lodge.

 

Our next meeting is scheduled for January 9th, 2024.  The meeting will be hosted by Lodge #9.  They have a great night planned.  We will be able to tour their First Responder Resource Center and Lodge Office.  We will move to the Skyline Social and Games for supper and the regular meeting.    Let us know if you are planning on attending.  A block of rooms is reserved at the Holiday Inn Express in Duluth.

 

Our Fall/Winter magazine is scheduled for release this month.  Look for it on our website soon.  It will also be linked to our Facebook page.  Again, thank you for looking for us and reading the new information available on the website.  Enjoy the winter and stay safe!

 

September 2023 - President Dave Miller

Thank you for clicking on our page.  We are proud of the accomplishments our State has achieved since my last report. Unfortunately, we had to host a Line of Duty Death Funeral in July.  Officer Jake Wallin of the Fargo ND Police Department was shot and killed on July 14th, 2023, while working a minor traffic accident.  Two other officers and a civilian were also injured by gunfire from a lone assassin.  The family wanted the funeral near their home in Pequot Lakes, MN.  Minnesota LEMA was actively involved as were members from our Lodge #11. Thank you to both groups for the outstanding work in a short period of time.

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We were represented by 20 delegates to the National Convention in Las Vegas.  Look for National Trustee Marichalar’s report elsewhere on this site for details of the convention.  I had never been to a convention as the President, so it was a little more stressful but fun no less.

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The last big event in September was the Jake Owen Street Dance in Starbuck MN.  The event was hosted by Lodge #23.  My wife and I joined other FOP members for the dance and silent auction.  I found lots of old friends and met many new ones while in Starbuck.  It appears that a lot of people from central Minnesota really support law enforcement. 

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September is nearly over.  I am busy preparing for the Fall Board Meeting on October 10th at Bad Habit Brewing in St, Joseph MN.  Lodge #17 will be our host and is planning on having food available during the social hour.  If you are interested in attending, please reach out to me so I can get a number to President Soyka for food.  The social hour will begin at 1800 and the meeting at 1900.

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In closing, thank you for taking the time to learn more about us.  If you have any questions or are interested in who we are and what we do, please reach out to me, National Trustee Marichalar or anyone on the board or even a local lodge member.  We are always interested in new members or chartering a new lodge if one is not available for you.

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July 2023 - President Dave Miller

Greetings MN FOP members. We had a great meeting in Bemidji hosted by Lodge #12. We covered a lot of ground. The big accomplishment was reaching an agreement for our Legal Defense services for the next 15 months. We wanted to create a plan that would give members several choices for their protection. Check out the options on our website tab. Also, a letter about the changes is being sent to every MN FOP member who has a usable address. If you do not get a letter, send me your name and updated address and we will get you a letter. It may be the end of July before you receive the letter.

I have received 20 names of delegates going to Las Vegas. We are looking forward to a great time in the desert. If you are going and have not sent in your credentials, we only have until July 24th to get them embossed and sent to National.

At the July meeting, several committee assignments were made. On the website, you can find all our committees and which ones need volunteers. If any committee interests you, reach out to me or VP Ohren.

The Grand Lodge will be sending out renewal packets to each active lodge in Minnesota. It is important that the forms and payment are sent back to the State Lodge before October 15th . We need to process and forward to the Grand Lodge.

Several Lodge events are coming up. Lodge #12 is having a golf tournament on September 6th . Lodge #23 is hosting a Street Dance in Starbuck to support Deputy Owen family and assist deputies in raising funds for Police Week. Lodge #23 is also having their Pheasant Hunt on October 20th . Our next State Board meeting is scheduled for October 10th at Bad Habit in St. Joseph.

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June 2023 - President Dave Miller

My name is David Miller. I was elected as the State President of the Minnesota State Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police in April of 2023. I am a charter member of NW MN Lodge #8 and retired from Moorhead Police Dept. I apologize for not updating the website for a couple of months since my election. It has been a very busy time for me learning all the responsibilities of being the State President. During my first couple of months, committees have been appointed to review our legal defense plan and our administrative procedures. I am trying to update all our local lodge information for better communications between the State and Local lodges. I have attended National Police Week, donation presentations, member awards ceremonies, and lodge meetings. We are in the process of identifying our delegates to the National Convention (Las Vegas) in August and planning a summer board meeting in Bemidji in July. Thank you for taking the time to look at our website. Please contact me if you have any questions, comments, or concerns.

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March 2018 - President Matt Hagen

I apologize for not getting an update out sooner, but sometimes work gets in the way of things. Since the last update we have been working on several projects that we feel will continue to move the MNFOP forward and help us recruit new members.

 

We are in the process of redesigning the MNFOP logo. The current logo has been used in one form or another for the last 20+ years and we felt that it was time to refresh it and update it. If you have any ideas for what you would like to see in the new logo please let me know. Our goal is to have a very elegant looking logo that really grabs peoples attention when they see it. Once we get the logo completed we are going to start working on a short 5-10 minute recruitment video. We have already been in contact with a video producer and we have a rough outline of what we think should be included in the video. If you have any ideas or items that you think should be included in the video please let me know. Once the video is completed it will be available for all members and local lodges to use for recruiting. Read more >

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October 2017

Thank you to those who took the time out of their busy schedules to attend the State Board Meeting at Chase on the Lake in Walker. We had a full agenda and were able to push through and get a lot of important work done on behalf of the membership.

 

Unfortunately I have to start with sad news, on September 8th Lake Minnetonka Lodge 6 member William Mathews of the Wayzata Police Department was struck and killed while removing debris from the traffic lane on US Hwy 12. His funeral was held on Thursday September 14th at 11:00 in Plymouth. As in other line of duty deaths, MN LEMA handled all of the funeral planning and arrangements. They did an amazing job honoring Officer Mathews at the service and with the procession to the cemetery that followed. We are working with the insurance company to file the accidental death claim on behalf of Officer Mathews. I recently sent out an email to local lodges looking for anyone with contacts with any of the major sports teams. We are working on setting up several events in the coming months for Wyatt Mathews the 7 y/o son of Officer William Mathews. After speaking with Shawn Mathews the widow of Officer Mathews, she told me that Wyatt is having a tough time with losing his father. We would like to get him to some sporting events and other events to take his mind off things. If you or your members can assist us with this please let me know. We have also been working with State Senator Paul Anderson to rename the section of Hwy 12 in Wayzata after Officer Mathews. When I spoke with Shawn Mathews she gave me her blessing to move forward with this. The bill has been drafted and has been sent to for review. Senator Anderson did not anticipate any opposition to this bill and is hoping to get it to a vote as soon as the session starts in late February of 2018. I will keep everyone updated as the bill makes it way through the system. In the meantime please remember keep his Officer Mathews family, friends and the Wayzata Police Department in your thoughts and prayers as they navigate thru this difficult time. Read more >

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September 2017

I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable summer. I want to apologize for not getting an update out sooner, but unfortunately work and family get in the way sometimes.

 

Unfortunately, last week Lodge 6 member William Mathews of the Wayzata Police Department was struck and killed while removing debris from the traffic lane. His funeral will be held on Thursday September 14th at 11:00 in Plymouth. Please contact me if you need the details for the funeral. We have reached out to MN LEMA to officer any assistance that is needed and we are working with the insurance company to file the accidental death claim on behalf of Officer Mathews. Please keep his family, friends and the Wayzata Police Department in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time. Read more >

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May 2017

Thank you to those who attended the State Conference for taking the time out of your busy schedules to attend and to have your voice heard. We had a full agenda and a lot of information was passed on to the membership.  I will highlight a few of the items discussed in this update. We have made some great strides in the last year to move the MNFOP forward after sitting idle for too long. We have become more financially stable by eliminating our debt and supporting the organization through membership dues. We are now able to start focusing on recruiting new members and securing additional benefits for our current ones. In the last couple of months, I have made contact with each local lodge to ensure that they are in compliance with the MN Secretary of State, and that they have all of their current information on file with the Grand Lodge. The majority of the lodges were in compliance and those that were not were given instructions on how to correct their issues. If your lodge is having issues please let myself or State Secretary David Miller know, and we will assist you with the process of getting in compliance. I am hoping to have continued contact between the local lodges and the State Lodge in the future. By doing this we will keep lodges better informed of what is going on not only in Minnesota, but across the country as well. It will also ensure that lodges are current and that any issues they are having will be taken care of in a timely manner. Read more >

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February 2017

Greetings Brothers and Sisters,

 

On February 14th and 15th Pat Chelmo from Lodge 6, Immediate Past President Gary Cayo and I will be attending the annual Day on the Hill in Washington D.C. hosted by the Grand Lodge Legislative Office. Day on the Hill is a time when FOP members from across the country can come together with a common voice and fight for the rights of all law enforcement officers no matter their uniform color or rank or agency size. We will be speaking to the “top legislative priorities” of the Grand Lodge, which include the ”Officers Due Process and Accountability Act” and the “Social Security Fairness Act”.  Read more >

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