Honoring John Willie
- Navajo
Codetalker
Last year about this time I was surfing the web when I happened on a site
that had a banner which read, "Searching for family of John Willie." I
was taken back by the message and read on to learn that a Congressional Gold
Medal was about to be presented in Washington, D.C. by President Bush to the
first 29 Navajo Codetalkers. I called family members in the excitement and some
close friends. There was a phone number that I had to call. The person on the
other end was Mary Gorman who was surprised to hear from me. She said, "
Where did you guys hide, I've been trying for weeks to find someone in your
family?"
I was told that a letter would be coming in the mail
soon. I eagerly awaited and finally one day there it was, a letter from the U.S.
Congress of the United States. It was an invitation to attend the Congressional
Gold Medal Ceremony at the U.S. Capitol. I immediately made plans to attend.
Arriving in Washington D.C. all family members stayed at the Regency Hotel.
The next day we were taken by bus to the Senate building for brunch and had
pictures and met some of the other Codetalker families, Congressmen and
Senators. Afterwards we got back on the bus and transported to the U.S. Capitol.
The U.S. Marine Band began playing and the speeches were made finally ending
with a speech by President Bush. It was like being in a dream and realizing that
this is part of history. The names of the first 29 Codetalkers were read.
It was a very proud moment and one that I will always remember.
My Uncle John Willie was just a teenager when he enlisted into the Marines in
1942, coming from Lupe, Arizona near the meteor crater. He was a member of the
Salt Clan. He was over six feet tall and had broad shoulders. He went through
all the training as the others did and then they were assigned the task of
developing a code in Navajo that would be used in combat. He survived numerous
battles and never was wounded. He returned to the States knowing he could not
talk about his war endeavors. He eventually became ill and died in Illinois. The
whole world will know how he and the other 28 Navajo Marines developed an
unbreakable code.
by Chuck Hedin
U.S. Veterans'
Administration
