A trio of Navajo code talkers from World War II will be among those receiving special recognition July 3 during this year's Independence Day ceremonies at Mount Rushmore National Memorial.
Arthur J. Hubbard Sr., Joe Morris and George B. Willie Sr. will be presented American flags during a flag-folding ceremony presided over by Rushmore superintendent Gerard Baker. Baker will be joined by the Wild Horse Bute Tokala Color Guard and the Ellsworth Air Force Base Honor Guard.
"The ingenuity and hard work of the Navajo code talkers were instrumental to the United States' success in World War II," Baker said in a news release. "It is an honor to have these three men with us for Mount Rushmore's Independence Day and to celebrate their contributions to America's fight for universal freedom."
A special feature of the ceremony will be the flags the three men will receive. Three American flags will be inside the B-1 bomber that will perform a 7 p.m. flyover at the memorial and will be given to the code talkers after the event.
Hubbard, Morris and Willie were three of more than 400 Native Americans between 1942 and 1945 who used their Native language to develop highly accurate and efficient codes to transmit military information in the Pacific theater. The undecipherable Navajo code took only minutes to transmit compared with the hours it took to translate messages in Morse code.
The Navajo code talkers served in all six Marine divisions and were praised for their central role in the United State's victory at Iwo Jima.
Hubbard served as an instructor of the code at Camp Elliott during the war. He later served as an Arizona state senator for 14 years and was the first Native American voted into the Arizona state senate.
Morris served as a corporal in the 22nd Marine Regiment and participated in the battles of Guadalcanal, Guam, Saipan, Okinawa and Tins Tao China.
Willie served in the 2nd Marine Division during the battle of Okinawa Ryukmu Island and the occupation of Japan from Sept. 23, 1945 until July 1, 1946.
If you go
What: Introduction of Navajo code talkers
When: Friday, July 3 at 6:45 p.m.
Where: Mount Rushmore Amphitheater stage
