Wellstone’s legacy lives on at St. Paul community center

Nearly 20 years after the fatal plane crash that killed Minnesota Sen. Paul Wellstone, the legacy of his work and family lives on in St. Paul at the Paul and Sheila Wellstone Center.

The community center serves as the headquarters of the 125-year old Neighborhood House that does work throughout St. Paul welcoming immigrants and refugees to the city.

“This building has created an environment that people come into and feel welcomed,” says Nancy Brady, president of Neighborhood House. “They feel invited.”

Brady helped raise millions of dollars for the 93,000-square-foot building after Wellstone’s death on Oct. 25, 2002. She’s now back years later serving as the president of Neighborhood House.

The rotunda lobby of the building features famous lines spoken by Wellstone, including, “We all do better when we all do better.” It’s also written in several other languages of people served by Neighborhood House from Spanish to Hmong.

Brady says Paul and Sheila Wellstone were always focused on welcoming newcomers to America, much like Wellstone’s parents, who were Jewish immigrants from Russia.

“They were alive and vibrant and engaging,” Brady says of Paul and Sheila Wellstone. “They cared about every different cultural group being a part of our community and having a sense of belonging.”

The building also features a tribute to Marcia Wellstone Markuson, their daughter who was on the plane with them. She was an avid runner and school teacher. The building features an indoor walking track across the hall from a preschool classroom. Money for the track was raised by her family and friends.

“They wanted to make sure she wasn’t left out of all this and she was remembered,” Brady said.

The three Wellstone family members were killed in the plane crash, along with Wellstone staff members Weill McLaughlin, Tom Lapic and Mary McEvoy. Two pilots on board were also killed: Richard Conry and Michael Guess.