School crossing guards and bus patrollers can’t always learn all they need to know by reading instruction manuals. In Minnesota, the Legionville School Patrol Training Center has instructed thousands of kids for over a half a century in a unique program that combines outdoor fun with a nationally recognized curriculum for kids that includes crosswalk and bus safety, first aid, along with watercraft and swimming guidance.

Launched in 1921 in St. Paul, the crossing-guard safety program shifted to the Minnesota Highway Patrol, which turned to the American Legion to help enact it across the state. The program, with volunteer assistance from qualified Legionnaires, was conducted at Crow Wing County Fairgrounds and Camp Ripley until the 1950s before moving to its permanent site — a 610-acre wooded camp with 1,500 feet of North Long Lake shoreline. The familiar old barn-shaped building with the name, LEGIONVILLE, above the front entry was torn down in 2014 and replaced with a brand-new, Legion-funded facility that opened in 2016.

The program, supported by American Legion posts throughout the state, annually attracts more than 1,000 crossing guards and transportation-safety patrollers ages 8-13. Legionville is also home to an annual camporee and special hunting trips for disabled veterans. Learn more about the Legionville School Safety Patrol Training Center at www.mnlegion.org or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/legionville.