A monument honoring more than 1,800 Oglala Lakota veterans will be unveiled during a dedication ceremony at 10 a.m. Saturday, June 23, at the Piya Wiconi Administrative Center Headquarters for Oglala Lakota College, six miles southwest of Kyle.

"This monument has been in the making for some time," Thomas Shortbull, president of Oglala Lakota College, said.

On the monument are two life-size bronze statues - one of a male Lakota veteran and the other of a female Lakota veteran. Flags of the United States and the Oglala Sioux Tribe will be posted on the site along with the Vietnam Veterans flag and the flags of deceased veterans.

Bronze plaques with the names of the Oglala Lakota veterans from World War I, World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War are mounted in a concrete half-circle.

"American Indians have had the highest rate of service of any racial group in defending this country," Shortbull said. "Oglala Lakota College is showing its appreciation and gratitude for the Oglala war veterans with the monument."

Oglala Lakota Capt. Tasha Standing Soldier will represent the U.S. military at the dedication. Standing Soldier is a pharmacist assigned to the 28th Medical Support Group Squadron, stationed at Ellsworth Air Force Base.

The dedication will also include a special honoring to Ola Millie Rexroat, an Oglala Lakota who will receive an honorary degree in Lakota Leadership from the college. Rexroat served as a pilot during World War II as a member of the Women Air Force Service Pilot program. When the WASP program was disbanded, Rexroat worked as an air-traffic controller until retirement.