Native Americans in the United States Army

The crews of two Lakota helicopters from Fort PolkAca,!a,,cs 5th Aviation Battalion pose with a Lakota performer at the powwow in South Dakota.

A UH-72 Lakota Light Utility Helicopter from Fort Polk, La., flies past Mount Rushmore on its way to the Lakota powwow in South Dakota.

Hoopa elder and veteran of the Korean War, Billy Carpenter, blesses the Bald Hill construction site with a traditional tribal prayer. Also pictured are Tribal Chairman Lyle Marshall and Brig. Gen. Kevin G. Ellsworth.

Col. Shannon B. Davis, deputy commander and chief of staff, Fort Carson, Colo., presented Two Feathers with an American Eagle and American Flag statue Nov. 17.

Members of the Blue Star Mothers present a floral arrangement to retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Wilma L. Vaught (left), president of the Women's Memorial Foundation during the Veterans Day ceremony.

Members of the Seven Falls Indian Dancers drum during the American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month celebration Nov. 17 at Fort Carson, Colo.

Members of the Seven Falls Indian Dancers and participants dance in a circle at the Elkhorn Conference Center Nov. 17 at Fort Carson, Colo.

Steve Howell, a member of the Seven Falls Indian Dancers performs social and exhibition dances during the American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month recognition Nov. 17 at Fort Carson, Colo.

Master Sgt. Woodrow Wilson Keeble's helmet with a bullet hole from Korea is on display with other memorabilia at Russell Hawkins' home in South Dakota.

Master Sgt. Woodrow Wilson Keeble will be awarded the Medal of Honor posthumously on March 3.

Lt. Col. Adrian Nagel, garrison commander of Camp Navajo, Ariz., and members of the Elfrieda Etsitty Tsosie Family, examine historical documents at the Camp Navajo Reunion July 19, 2007. Camp Navajo's oral history project helped the Arizona National Guard training center win the fiscal 2008 Secretary of the Army Environmental Award for cultural resources management.

America's Forgotten Fortress of Freedom

America's Forgotten Fortress of Freedom.

Crystal Hagan, Camp Stanley Community Activity Center director, entertains the troops with a few songs played on an American Indian flute during a National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month event at the facility in Uijeongbu Nov. 3.

Ethan Gregg, 7, models a Native American headdress as Susan "White Lily" Little, from the Stockbridge Munsee Band of the Mohicans, describes how different headdresses are made and why they are worn by members of various tribes. The Mohican tribe is one of 20 tribes represented in the "Circle of Native Americans," whose members visited Pierce Terrace Monday and C.C. Pinckney Elementary School Tuesday.

Michael "Tall Bear" Mann, 10, describes the design and construction of a traditional tipi lodge for Pierce Terrace Elementary Students.

Rick Bird, center, event master of ceremonies, leads a group of Native American drummers during songs for the annual Honor Our Armed Forces Native American PowWow in Daleville Nov. 13.

Darius "Crow" Carter, from North Carolina, renders a salute to the U.S. Flag during the opening ceremony of the annual Honor Our Armed Forces Native American PowWow in Daleville Nov. 13.

Tom Miles, the author's grandfather, is shown holding the football for a kick at Carlisle Indian Industrial School circa 1911. Miles was a freshman when his cousin Jim Thorpe was a senior on the team.

Richard Greybull (Foreground) and Donald Miller post the colors at the Native American Heritage Celebration at the post exchange, Oct. 29.

Sgt. 1st Class Eric Christopherson, a member of the South Dakota Army National Guard Military Honors team, presents a folded American flag to Julie Marshall, the eldest surviving sister of Sgt. 1st Class Arthur F. "Bluie" Jewett, during a burial ceremony held near White Horse, S.D., Sept. 25. Jewett, a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, was killed-in-action during the Korean War's Chosin Reservoir campaign.

Rodney Bordeaux, Rosebud Sioux Tribal Coucil President admires LUH model with other members of his tribe

Rosebud Sioux tribal council president Rodney Bordeaux receives a Lakota UH-72A commemorative photo from Lt. Col. James Brashear, Light Utility Helicopter product manager.

Having just fastened a Silver Star on the uniform of Staff Sgt. Conrad Begaye (right) from 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, Maj. Gen. William B. Garrett III, commander of U.S. Army Africa, presents Begaye with an official citation during a ceremony on June 30, 2009. Begaye was awarded the Silver Star for his valorous actions during an enemy ambush Nov. 9, 2007, in the Nuristan Province of Afghanistan.

Staff Sgt. Conrad Begaye stands before rows of fellow Soldiers from 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, during a ceremony on June 30, 2009. Begaye was awarded the Silver Star for his valorous actions during an enemy ambush Nov. 9, 2007, in the Nuristan Province of Afghanistan.

Sgt. Amber Red Bear, from Pine Ridge, S.D., a chemical equipment repairer in Company E, 1st Battalion, 227th Aviation Regiment, 1st Air Cavalry Brigade, 1st Cavalry Division, speaks about her tribe, the Lakota Indians, at a Native American Heritage Month event, Nov. 27, at the Taji Ministry Center, here.

Sgt. 1st Class Eric Christopherson, a member of the South Dakota Army National Guard Military Honors team, presents a folded American flag to Julie Marshall, the eldest surviving sister of Sgt. 1st Class Arthur F. "Bluie" Jewett, during a burial ceremony held near White Horse, S.D., Sept. 25. Jewett, a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, was killed-in-action during the Korean War's Chosin Reservoir campaign.

Larry Hale, a member of the Red Feather Society, guards the flag-draped casket of Sgt. 1st Class Arthur F. "Bluie" Jewett at his funeral held in Eagle Butte, S.D., on Sept. 25. Jewett, a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, was killed in action during the Korean War's Chosin Reservoir campaign.

Members of the South Dakota Army National Guard Military Funeral Honors team fold an American flag during the burial ceremony for Sgt. 1st Class Arthur F. "Bluie" Jewett at St. Theresa Catholic cemetery near White Horse, S.D., Sept. 25. Jewett, a member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, was killed-in-action during the Korean War's Chosin Reservoir campaign and his remains were not identified until earlier this year.

Woodrow W. Keeble during the Korean War

Ceremonial Dances in the Pacific.

Having just fastened a Silver Star on the uniform of Staff Sgt. Conrad Begaye (right) from 2nd Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, Maj. Gen. William B. Garrett III, commander of U.S. Army Africa, shakes Begaye's hand during a ceremony on June 30, 2009. Begaye was awarded the Silver Star for his valorous actions during an enemy ambush Nov. 9, 2007, in the Nuristan Province of Afghanistan.

Susan "White Lily" Little, from the Stockbridge Munsee Band of the Mohicans, and her granddaughter, Dyani "Of the Deer" Mann, 13, describe the customs and traditions of the tribe to Pierce Terrace Elementary School students Tuesday.

Since the 17th century, the National Guard has provided units for the first-line defense of the nation. The Scout Battalions of the 297th Infantry, Alaska Army National Guard, composed mostly of Eskimos, continue this historic mission. Supported by the 176th Tactical Airlift Group, Alaska Air National Guard, the Scout Battalions patrol the vast Alaskan tundra. The battalions were organized during World War II and given the mission of providing early warning in case of an enemy landing. Just as they have done since 1942, the Scouts operate from small villages in Northern and Western Alaska, constantly observing the Bering Sea coastline and often providing significant intelligence information. Like their colonial predecessors, the Scouts of the 297th Infantry and the airmen of the 176th Tactical Airlift Group continue to defend their community, state, and nation.

Lieutenant Jack C. Montgomery

First Sergeant Pascal Cleatus Poolaw Sr. served this country through three wars, and made the ultimate sacrifice in Vietnam.

A member of Nawetsa Dancers from Zuni Pueblo performs a buffalo dance at the Native American Heritage Month Luncheon at the Frontier Club.

Keith Edaakie of the Nawetsa Dancers from Zuni Pueblo performs the Eagle Dance at the foot of a memorial bur oak planted in front of the Army enlisted barracks. The tree was dedicated during a ceremony Nov. 4, 2007, to honor the life and sacrifice of Army Spc. Lori Ann Piestewa of the 507th Maintenance Company from Fort Bliss, Texas. Piestewa was Native American from the Hopi community in Tuba City, Ariz., and the first female Soldier killed in action in Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Spc. Lori Piestewa shares a moment with a fellow Soldier before being deployed from Fort Bliss, Texas, in this Feb. 18, 2003, photo.

Lori Ann Piestewa's children, Carla, 4, and Brandon, 5, play with Game Boys during a reception for their grandparents at the Frontier Club, Nov. 3, 2007. The Hopi Tribe of Arizona has established a memorial fund for the children.

Piestewa was a Soldier with the 507th Maintenance Company stationed at Fort Bliss.

Spc. Lori Piestewa's father, Terry, greets new friends at a reception at the Frontier Club.

Family and friends mourn Spc. Lori Ann Piestewa during a memorial dedication ceremony at White Sands Missile Range, N.M., Nov. 4, 2007. Piestewa, a 23-year-old Hopi Native American from Tuba City, Ariz., was the first American service woman killed in action in Operation Iraqi Freedom. From left are her Army roommate, former POW Jessica Lynch; her mother Priscilla "Percy" Piestewa; and her children: Carla, 4, and Brandon, 5. Piestewa and Lynch were among members of the 507th Maintenance Company from Fort Bliss, Texas, ambushed near Nasiriyah, Iraq, on March 23, 2003. The missile range planted a bur oak on the lawn of the enlisted Soldiers' barracks in Piestewa's memory.

Comanche code-talkers of the 4th Signal Company.

Army Code Talkers - Front Row, left to right: Roderick RedElk, Simmons Parker, Larry Saupitty, Melvin Permansu, Willie Yackeschi, Charles Chibitty and Willington Mihecoby. Back Row, left to right: Morris Sunrise, Perry Noyebad, Ralph Wahnee, Haddon Codynah, Robert Holder, Albert Nahquaddy, Clifford Ototivo and Forrest Kassanavoid. (not pictured: Elgin Red Elk and Anthony Tabbytite).

Soldier teaching son - Sgt. Sinew L Riley teaches his son Larrie H. Riley Indian wood lore at Fort Huachuca, Ariz., 1942.

Army Code Talkers - Left to Right: Corporal Jim Lane, John Rope, and Kassey Y-32. Ft. Huachuca, Arizona, 1942.

Apache Scout Kessay mounted on the parade field, in the early 1940s.

Apache Scout William Major with an officer of the 25th Infantry in the 1930s.

Pfc. Chelsea Draper with her grandfather, retired Marine Sgt. Maj. Teddy Draper Sr., in Chinle, Ariz. Draper Sr.'s service as a code talker during World War II inspired Pfc. Draper to join the military.

Pfc. Chelsea Draper, Forward Support Company, 1st Battalion, 8th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Advise and Assist Brigade, 4th Infantry Division, prepares to drive her military vehicle to its guard point protecting her base in Maysan, Iraq.