By Candy Moulton
As people stand in line to cast their ballots in the 2024 election, I want to give a shout-out to the men and women who formed our republic some 250 years ago and those who have defended it during the two and a half centuries. Their service will be recognized on Monday during Veterans Day and their sacrifice means we have opportunities and choices in our lives.
I was just a little girl when I remember seeing my first veterans’ monument in Wyoming. It is on the southwest corner of the Carbon County Courthouse block in Rawlins, at 5th and W. Pine Streets. I was probably five years old when I stood on that corner with my family in a long line of people, waiting for a sugar cube in a cup that was the polio vaccine.
My sister, brother, and I were probably bored standing in the line so when we came past the veterans’ monument our dad took us over to it and read some of the many names of soldiers who had served in the armed forces. We all knew he had been an airplane mechanic with the Army Air Corps and had been in Mississippi and Alabama during World War II – which he always called “The Big One.”
There have been more wars since my childhood and other family members and friends have been in harm’s way in the Army, Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard, and Marines. And over the decades, I’ve seen other veteran’s memorials – some very simple like the stone marker to World War II veterans in Hanna. Others are more elaborate like the monuments at Memorial Park in Cody.
One of the newest in Wyoming is The Path of Honor, Wind River Veterans Memorial, on the Wind River Reservation near Fort Washakie. This beautiful memorial to veterans from the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho tribes who have served in all branches of the military is an inspiring place with a red path, symbolizing Native American courage and commitment to living a purposeful life.
The four stones that form the memorial represent the eras prior to World Wars, plus World Wars I and II, the Korean War and Vietnam War, and then the era after Vietnam including the Gulf Wars. When viewed together the four stones also represent the buffalo, a symbol of strength and courage.
One of the engraved statements on the Wind River Memorial is a sentiment often used on memorials: “Our flag does not fly because the wind moves it. It flies with the last breath of each soldier who died protecting it.”
We should all think about that as we recognize our veterans November 11. Of course, that timing is significant as the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918 is when the armistice between the Allied Nations and Germany signaled the end of World War I.
As we all know, more wars followed, and there are events unfolding even now that involve many nations, and they still require the service and sacrifice of the men and women of the US Military.
My friend Scotty Ratliff served during Vietnam, sustaining injuries that he has dealt with since the day he was wounded. One of his statements is included on the Wind River Veterans’ Memorial: “It is not the service that makes the warrior, it is the warrior that makes the service.”
Anyone who knows Scotty understands that he has been a warrior not only on the battlefield, but also on the reservation and for Wyoming. I know him best in his role as the founder (with some friends) of the Wyoming Cowboy Hall of Fame.
Scotty was the first tribal member elected to the Wyoming State Legislature, serving from 1980 to 1992. He has also been a tribal liaison to U.S. Senators Michael Enzi and Cynthia Lummis. He is officially retiring and will be recognized on Friday from 3 to 5 p.m. with a reception at the Central Wyoming College Intertribal Center.
One of his contributions to the tribal community and to the state, is the Wind River Veterans Memorial.
Other statements by tribal members are a part of that memorial including this one from Burnett Lee Brown, which says in part, “I have cried, pained, hoped and prayed. But most of all, I have lived times others would say were best forgotten….I will be able to say that I was proud of what I was, a United State Marine, for my tribe and for my country, the United States of America.”
When the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month rolls around next week, take the time to remember all veterans. In the meantime, take a stroll through your town or county and pay tribute at the local veterans’ memorial, because from my roaming around Wyoming, I can say almost every city and town has such a monument or marker. Some are large and imposing, others small, but all are significant in their meaning.
Candy Moulton can be reached at Candy.L.Moulton@gmail.com
