Washington, D.C.— Today, Congressman Tom Emmer (MN-06) applauded the passage of his legislation to rename the Avon Post Office in honor of Army National Guard Warrant Officer Candidate Kort M. Plantenberg.

In 2019, Plantenberg lost his life alongside fellow Guardsmen Chief Warrant Officer 2 James A. Rogers Jr. and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Charles P. Nord when their helicopter experienced a mid-flight mechanical failure near St. Cloud.

Emmer said, “Kort, James, and Charles gave their lives in service to Minnesotans, and we will never forget their sacrifice. We are proud that Kort’s hometown will have a permanent reminder of his service.”

Plantenberg was born in St. Cloud in 1991 and raised in Avon. He was a graduate of Albany Area High School and the University of Minnesota–Duluth.

Background:

Emmer introduced legislation to rename the Avon Post Office in Plantenberg’s honor in December 2021, two years after the accident. The bill was co-sponsored by every member of the Minnesota delegation, including the late Representative Jim Hagedorn (MN-01) and Representatives Angie Craig (MN-02), Dean Phillips (MN-03), Betty McCollum (MN-04), Ilhan Omar (MN-05), Michelle Fischbach (MN-07), and Pete Stauber (MN-08).

Representative Fischbach’s legislation to honor Chief Warrant Officer 2 Rogers and Chief Warrant Officer 2 Nord with Post Offices in her district recently passed on the House floor.

You can watch Congressman Emmer speak on the House floor in support of the legislation here.

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