Indian veterans memorial dedicated in Pablo

Images of service, strength: Indian veterans memorial dedicated in Pablo

By VINCE DEVLIN of the Missoulian

PABLO - The vision of the coyotes came to artist Corky Clairmont 20 years ago.

He just didn't know what it was for at the time.

On a warm Wednesday, hundreds of people saw part of Clairmont's vision etched in granite as the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes dedicated the Clairmont-designed Warrior/Veterans Wall of Remembrance at Eagle Circle in front of tribal headquarters.

Tepee poles 65 feet tall rise over the memorial, and serve to welcome Indian veterans both alive and dead back home to their reservation.

Inside the monument, the head of an eagle occupies the tallest piece of granite, and other pieces form the wings that circle around to protect those inside.

On those inside walls, the names of more than 1,200 Indians from the Flathead Reservation who have served their nation are carved into the stone.

There's Louis Charlo, the young man from Evaro who help raise the first American flag on Iwo Jima in 1945, and was killed in action there a week later.
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Indian veterans memorial dedicated in Pablo