The armistice to end the great war to end all wars went into effect at that time.

It is indeed an honor to be here today to mark a date set in history, a day to give thanks for the sacrifices made for us in the past, to celebrate our progress from those efforts, and to rededicate ourselves for peace in our future.

In my youth, it never occured to me that I would ever be in this position that I find myself in here today, talking about my war, Vietnam. The journey from that time has been long, thirty years, filled with memories, some tortuous, some benign, some enlightening, that guide me through life today. Yet, soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines influenced me before my own military service.

Twenty-seven years after Wounded Knee, the Sioux were fighting for the United States at places like Belleau Woods and Meuse Argonne in France. We Indians were given citizenship because of the sacrifices of our Sioux warriors in this great war to end all wars. As good citizens we fought our country'ís battles in places such a Normandy, Okinawa, Iwo Jima, followed by Inchon, Porkchop Hill, the Chosin Resevoir, Khe Sanh, Hills 830, 823, 882, 875, Tet Offensive, Desert Shield, and Desert Storm.

In my youth on the Yankton Sioux Reservation, we never forgot the stories given to us by our Veterans. Every Memorial Day, every Armistice Day, we gathered for ceremonies at our respective cemetaries for services to remember those who passed on and those currently serving. Survivors placed fruit, gum, candy, tobacco, wrapped in colorful handkerchiefs on the graves. In this way they remembered their beloved departed one by sharing the special treats that he or she especially enjoyed. The tribeís Veterans of Foreign War Post visited each site on those days, raising our flag, playing taps, and rendering a rifle salute to departed comrades. After dismissing ranks, they were given sandwiches, coffee, and told to visit certain graves to take the bundles for their own use. We young ones went about gathering the spent cartridges for storing in our secret caches. We remembered the event, its meaning, and the stories of our Veterans each time we revisited our treasure trove. Of my generation of Yankton Siouxs, over 64 of us served our country in Vietnam. Of all Sioux people from South Dakota who served in the Republic of South Vietnam, 24 of us made the supreme sacrifice. We are proud veterans.

Our mission is threefold today, to give thanks to our veterans on the large scale, yet, to remember the common sacrifices of our respective communities here in Vermillion, and to thank those parents whose children served in Armed Forces ranks. The University of South Dakota has drawn from those ranks and benefitted from Veteranís contributions both as a place of learning and those who staff the institution. Men such as Major Generals (Retired) Lloyd Moses and Walter Reed, Richard Fox, Ray Ring, Al Nygaard, Matt Stricherz, Doyle Pipe On Head, Herbert Hoover, Bill Huber, William Fleser, and others of whom I regret not knowing or remembering at this time, bring their special expertise, tempered by military service, onto our campus. Student veterans such as Billie Kingfisher, Joe Okie, and Jerald Lytle come here to learn and share their own experiences with their fellow citizens.

Our Vermillion community has many hometown men and women who have served in the military service. William "Ron" Rothschadl, Randy Radigan, Terry Pickett, Larry Edwards, Bruce Erickson, to name a few, make up the roster of men and women, both living and dead, who sacrificed their time and efforts for us.

We can all draw a lesson from the life of Mr. Woodrow Keeble, a man from the Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota, who served our country in Korea. Mr. Keeble is recognized as the most decorated soldier in our state. Upon his return to civilian life, Mr. Keeble dedicated himself to serving the needs of his fellow Veterans, both Indian and non-Indian. By his selfless service he overcame racial prejudice by working tirelessly on behalf of Veterans and their respective families. It is a lesson all of us who served know, we cannot survive as a nation without putting aside our prejudices, much as we could not survive a war by fighting each other in the foxholes. Together, we become stronger, together we build a brighter future for the next generations. We can dedicate ourselves to helping the thirty-four percent of homeless people in our country who happen to be Veterans.

I would be remiss today not to remind ourselves that across our great nation many people are gathered together much as we are here, prayerfully remembering the past, rededicating ourselves to the future. Across Indian reservations, Veterans and survivors are gathered together at cemetaries doing those things that keep the past alive and guarantee the future. In their prayers they make no distinction based on a personís color, creed, or status in life. Indian people adhere to the principal colors, red, white, yellow, and black and its lessons, we are all human beings, we are all within the circle of life, we are all as relatives. In our veins flows our blood, red, the same color flows through all humans. When we put on that uniform, whether Marine, Army, Navy, Air Force, or Coast Guard we became one and the same, men and women who are dedicated to carrying on the task given to us by those who preceded us, a task to maintain peace and order in our country, and wherever called upon for help. In this way we secure the liberty that all human beings can enjoy in our global community.

And so I leave you today with sincere appreciation for taking the time to remember with me the sacrifices of our Veterans, to appreciate the life they provided for us today, and to rededicate ourselves to provide just as bright a future for the coming generations as we were given.

I will use the short prayer the Sioux people use, Mitakuye Oyasin--We Are All Relatives, to close these remarks. When we are relatives, we have obligations to each other, we have a responsibility to care for each other, we must be good relatives. Across our universe we are all as relatives. Mitakuye Oyasin. Ho, Hechitu yedo. Tahunska Tanka, he miyedo.

Editor's Note: If this essay is used by anybody, I would appreciate attribution as commonly accepted courtesy. I also apologize for not remembering or knowing all Veterans by name, I could only use a sample in this talk.

One more disclaimer: We of the Ocheti Sakowin Oyate, People of the Seven Council Fires--Dakota/Lakota/Nakota know who we are and address ourselves that way, we are Dakota, etc. I have used the european generic Sioux in this essay for clarity.

Leonard R. Bruguier