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Meskwaki Nation holds ceremony for Vietnam Veterans

The Robert Morgan Legion bore the flags, leading veterans off the field after the History of Meskwaki Service Members ceremony on Friday. Carrying the flags were Dixie Kapayou with the American flag, Adolf Bear with the Meskwaki flag, Luke Kapayou with the POW flag, and Craig Youngbear with the American Legion Flag. Photo by Vanessa Roudabush
Sean Kiana, Sr, led the History of Meskwaki Service Members ceremony. His son currently serves in the Marines at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. His father is a US veteran Samson Kiana and a member of the Robert Morgan Legion Post 701. Photo by Vanessa Roudabush
Jonathan Buffalo gave a speech about the Meskwaki code talkers of World War II during a veterans ceremony held in conjunction with the arrival of The Wall That Heals at the settlement on Friday. Photo by Vanessa Roudabush
Romeo Buffalo performed two songs, one of which he finished the morning of the ceremony titled “ When I Hear Your Laugh“ on the flute. Photo by Vanessa Roudabush
Tanya Bear sang ‘Amazing Grace’ in the Meskwaki language before The Wall That Heals. Photo by Vanessa Roudabush
The Brown Otter Singers performed a veterans honor song while other Meskwaki members joined in dance to the drum beat. Photo by Vanessa Roudabush

On Friday, Aug. 5, at dusk, the Meskwaki Nation held a History of Meskwaki Service Members ceremony before The Wall That Heals. The current officers of the Robert Morgan Legion are Commander Dixie Kapayou, a retired veteran of the Army, Vice Commander Craig Youngbear of the US Marine Corps, Sergeant at Arms Henry Walker of the US Marine Corps, Adjutant Tashina Azure of the Navy, and Elder Preston Milken, a veteran of the Marine Corps.

A total of 252 Meskwaki members have served in the U.S. armed forces. Those who gave the ultimate sacrifice in the Vietnam War include Sergeant Richard Clive Youngbear, a paratrooper with the 101st Airborne Division of the US Army, killed on Feb. 3, 1966; Private First Class Dale Earl Benson, enlisted as a Code Talker, served with the 65th Engineer’s Battalion of the US Army, killed on Jan. 15, 1967 and Private First Class Terry Roberts, trained as a rifleman serving with the First Marine Division in the Marine Corps, killed on Dec. 20, 1967.

Tribal Historian Jonathan Buffalo prepared a speech on the history of Meskwaki Code Talkers that he delivered during the ceremony. In 1941, a group of Meskwaki men — Frank Sanache, Willard Sanache, Dewey Youngbear, Edward Benson, Judy Wayne Wabaunasee, Mike Wayne Wabaunasee, Dewey Roberts, and Mike Twin — enlisted in Company H of the 168th Infantry in the National Guard as Code Talkers. These men became code talkers at Camp Claiborne in Louisiana when their company officials realized they were Meskwaki and transferred them to the headquarters company for radio training.

In late 1941, the 168th Infantry left for Ireland for more training and in 1942 participated in Operation Torch, invading North Africa. In 1943, the unit was advancing through Algeria into Tunisia; half of the unit was stationed in the Fā’id Pass to guard against the German Armed Forces.

Buffalo retold the story of Jonas Sanache of the German tanks rolling by.

” He said there was ‘nothing we could do to stop them.’ They were–surrounded–after a while, they realized they were behind enemy lines, and leaflets were flown over the mountain, instructing them to surrender,” Buffalo said. “They destroyed their radios. They burned their code books and went down the mountain. Him and Dewey Youngbear became prisoners of war. They ended up in Germany.”

Another Meskwaki prisoner of war was Judy Wayne Wabaunasee, captured earlier and sent to an Italian prison camp. After these three were captured, ending the Meskwaki code talker unit.

Buffalo explained what exactly a Meskwaki code talker was.

“When we say code talkers, we think they were just talking Meskwaki, which they were, but they had to develop a code using their language,” he said. “So even if they were talking in their code, a Meskwaki wouldn’t understand what they were talking about.”

Axis code breakers have never cracked the code created by these Meskwaki men, and it has yet to be decommissioned by the US Armed Forces. If you wish to learn more about the history of the Meskwaki Nation, visit the Meskwaki Cultural Center and Museum at 303 Meskwaki Road, Tama, Monday through Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. or by appointment.