Nooksack Tribal member’s WWII sacrifice recalled at Veterans Day ceremony to honor all vets
In 1945, USS Pringle — a Naval destroyer — was attacked in Okinawa, Japan. Of the 69 Americans who died in service to their country on the ship, one was Wendell H. Fidele, a Nooksack Tribal member.
The U.S. Navy watertender was lost at sea, but a headstone bears his name at a Whatcom County cemetery.
Members of American Legion Post No. 83 shared Fidele’s story over a salmon lunch at the Nooksack Indian Tribe’s Mí sq’ eq’ ó Community Building in Everson, Wash., Thursday, Nov. 11. At the Tribe’s annual Veterans Day ceremony and celebration, the legion, Tribal members who served and local veterans were honored with recognition, applause and songs from the Sulkanum Singers.
Fidele’s name is featured on the navy blue legion flag in gold letters and their matching teal jackets to “honor the ultimate sacrifice for one’s country,” a legion member said.
Nooksack Chairman Ross Cline, Sr. read from President Biden’s proclamation on National Native American Heritage Month, which is held in November.
“The United States of America was founded on an idea: that all of us are created equal and deserve equal treatment, equal dignity, and equal opportunity throughout our lives... the fact remains that we have fallen short many times,” the chairman read. “Far too often in our founding era and in the centuries since, the promise of our nation has been denied to Native Americans who have lived on this land since time immemorial.”
The proclamation noted that American Indians and Alaska Natives have served in the Armed Forces at a higher rate than any other ethnic group in the nation.
The event’s emcee, Kevin Roberts, explained that Veterans Day is celebrated on Nov. 11, the day World War I ended in 1918. He said the ceremony takes place on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month as a reminder of that day and all who served.
“It’s great that we kept that day that we collectively as a nation come together to say thank you to our veterans, but they deserve more than that,” Whatcom County Executive Satpal Singh Sidhu said at the event.
“We have a shared responsibility to protect and defend the freedom that they’ve obtained for us... As a nation, we owe you a debt that I’m not sure we can sufficiently repay,” said Whatcom County Undersheriff Doug Chadwick.
During the ceremony, the veterans present were asked to stand, say their name and branch of service. Then a list of Nooksack Tribal members who had served was read, their photos lining the entrance to the hall in a glass case.
The Tribe’s Veterans Manager Cara McCoy said there are over 60 Tribal members known to have served, about 30 are alive and two are active duty. She is working to confirm and update the Tribe’s database.
Other speeches included calls for funding and more support for veterans’ access to healthcare.
McCoy — who is Tulalip and a U.S. Army veteran — said many local veterans seek healthcare services at the Community Based Outpatient Clinic in Mount Vernon or have to go as far as Seattle, but the Tribe is working toward solutions to making access for veterans better, cheaper and closer.
This story was originally published November 12, 2021 at 12:23 PM.
