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The 11th of November, 1940, was a beautiful fall day, but by late afternoon the storm hit. By morning the snow was over knee deep, the wind was blowing hard and the temp was below zero. Over 150 people died of exposure and lack of shelter.

I am 97 now but was 14 then and a paperboy for the morning Tribune. Each morning I got up at 6:30, walked two blocks to the paper shack and picked up 40 papers that I peddled to 40 homes in an eight-block area. Few boys got their papers delivered on the 12th. I did, and now 83 years later I came upon this "Certificate of Merit" for doing so. I earned about $8 per month. That's about 27 cents per day, about 14 cents an hour.

J.T. Holl, Excelsior

As a veteran, U.S. Army 1966-1968, I note with interest published offers of free meals, discounts on groceries and other benefits for veterans to commemorate Veterans Day. Wednesday's Star Tribune highlighted such an offer from Applebee's for a free meal. Then comes the inevitable fine print that makes the offer hollow, i.e., "Valid military ID required."

I have not possessed a valid military ID since sometime in the early '70s. I suspect that the vast majority of prior service veterans are in the same boat. I suppose I could offer a copy of my discharge papers, i.e., DD Form 214. However, veterans have been told to protect that document because it is the key to the receipt of a variety of veterans benefits, including free burial. I also guess that the stereotypical 22-year-old server at Applebee's or elsewhere would not accept that document as a "valid ID."

Nice attempt at thanking vets, but practically meaningless.

Don Gemberling, St. Paul

In addition to "The math doesn't work for seniors" (Readers Write, Oct. 19), our numbers don't lie. My retirement plan seemed doable. I worked hard all my adult life and invested in a 401(k) plan. I was proud of myself for being a homeowner as a single parent. I maintained an excellent credit rating. I lived a modest lifestyle and never had to do without the necessities. Now, my annual fixed income of Social Security and monthly disbursements from a very modest investment is $4 below the 2023 federal poverty level of $24,860. This is not the exception, but the norm for a large percentage of retirees.

During the last seven years in my Section 42 building, my monthly income has increased $309, while my monthly rent has increased $480. If I were to try to get into this building today, based on my income, I wouldn't even qualify. If my income were at what's considered "low income" of $54,950, I'd feel like I was on easy street.

Developers want to make money. I get that. But their advertising and promises are only temporary. Housing costs for fixed-income seniors need to be based on income, with rent increases based on Social Security cost-of-living adjustments. Developers willing to build with this in mind would continue to make money. Maybe not as much, but tenancy stability would be to their advantage. And it would be good PR. As it is, today's seniors are being priced out of their homes.

The affordable senior housing crisis has become a huge snowball, speeding downhill to a destination of homelessness. This is our reality.

Char Golgart, Coon Rapids

In reference to the letter "Diversity need not cause division" (Nov. 9) about showcasing musical diversity: Having been a proponent of music, as a participant and spectator, for many years, I concur. When words fail, music speaks. Whatever the conduit, it has lifted my spirits from sorrow to joy. (At my age, the jury is still out pertaining to "rock.") For those who think they cannot carry a tune, sing out anyway! From my perspective, it is better to carry a tune than carrying a misused gun. Music is a healer.

Lillian Fallek, Golden Valley

What am I missing?

As someone who worked as an executive in the private sector with responsibility for overseeing hiring, promotions and firings, I am often confused by what passes for discipline in the public sector. A police lieutenant is placed on a paid vacation ("paid leave" for one year) for "forwarding a racist email" ("From paid leave to head of homicide," Nov. 9). The person is then issued "a written reprimand" upon return and, six months later, promoted. I certainly hope there is a lot more to this story that we haven't been told yet. And by the way, this is not an anti-police rant, but just an example of how the outcomes don't seem to be warranted by the circumstances.

Charles Hendrickson, Eden Prairie

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Now that the Third Precinct building has paid for its part in the terrible riots, I would like to have examined the present makeup of the Third Precinct force. I know that some are in jail and perhaps some on leave. How many of the original force at the time of the riots are still working in the Third Precinct?

The larger task will be to reshape the rules that regulate police conduct and misconduct. Let us hope the city has the courage to do so.

Terry Kita, Minneapolis

Adrian Wooldridge, in his Nov. 5 commentary reprinted from Bloomberg ("It's a world of walls"), indicated that it will take more than walls to reduce the overwhelming flow of migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border, currently over 2 million crossings per year. President Joe Biden's meeting with officials from 11 Western Hemisphere countries on Nov. 3 is a step in the right direction that needs to be greatly augmented. Bolstering the economies of these countries can help alleviate the poverty that many migrants are fleeing. Another would be to refocus the asylum system on those threats that cannot be managed by internal displacement, primarily direct personal threats by a government on a citizen. Poverty and crime do not meet that criteria, and determinations of eligibility will need to be made prior to attempted entry, just as they are for other legal entry. Both measures should receive bipartisan support, given the inability of major U.S. cities and states to absorb the current pace of migration.

Les Everett, Falcon Heights

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As I read Wooldridge's thoughtful, carefully researched commentary, I was reminded of Robert Frost's poem, "Mending Wall" (first published in "North of Boston" in 1914, at the beginning of World War I), which ends with the often-quoted, "Good fences make good neighbors." Often overlooked is Frost's cautionary musing in the interior of the poem, "Before I built a wall I'd ask to know / What I was walling in or walling out, / And to whom I was like to give offence. / Something there is that doesn't love a wall, / That wants it down."

Judith Monson, St. Paul