Diné medal of honor design unveiled
By Marley Shebala
Navajo Times
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(Times photo - Paul Natonabah)
The new design for the Diné medal of honor was created by artist Sheldon Preston of Phoenix. It was unveiled Monday at the speaker's office.
The design for a Diné medal of honor was unveiled Monday before a small group of council delegates in the speaker's office.
Before artist Sheldon Preston unveiled his design, he noted that the tribe's investment in him as a student at Arizona State University had paid off. He had earned a degree in architecture and design under a Navajo Nation scholarship.
"The Navajo Nation invested in one of their own," Preston said proudly. "And today, the Navajo Nation is getting a return on their investment."
He said he was honored to be selected to design the medal, and said it saddened him to learn that not all veterans are happy about the council's plan to create the award.
Most leaders of veteran organizations on the reservation have said the money would be better spent on direct services for veterans.
"I want to tell our warrior veterans that I hear your voice and your words," said Preston, who has his own design firm in Burbank, Calif. "I am honoring you veterans in the best way I know as an artist and as a Navajo.
"I don't know that path you have walked and the war experiences that you faced and touched," he said, noting that although he is not a veteran, his grandfather, Jimmie Preston, was a Navajo Code Talker with the 5th Marine Division in Iwo Jima.
Preston, who was accompanied by members of his family at the unveiling, added that he could never give his grandfather all that he may have wanted or needed.
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"I put all my heart and hard work into creating this medallion for you," he continued, speaking directly to Navajo veterans. "And it may not be what you want or need.
"All I can offer you are my prayers, the love I have for you and a tangible creation to symbolize my heartfelt appreciation," he said. "And my hope is that you accept me as your brother, son, and grandson that honors you. In all honesty, the rejection of my honoring would deeply hurt. I don't want to be rejected by you."
Vietnam veteran Dave Shondee (Chilchinbeto/Kayenta), a member of the council's subcommittee on veteran affairs, was emotional as he thanked Preston and remembered his experiences in the Vietnam War. He added that like many of his Vietnam comrades, he repeatedly asks himself why he had to go to war.
"Many of us are veterans and we have suffered deeply," said Shondee. "This (design) is an honor."
According to Leila Help-Tulley, staff assistant to Speaker Lawrence Morgan, Preston received $70,000 for his work.
Help-Tulley, whom Morgan assigned to the medal project, is working on the procedure for awarding the medal.
A draft of the guidelines states that chapters would recommend veterans to the speaker's office and all veterans who are honorably discharged are eligible.
Chapter recommendations would be approved by the chiefs of the three branches of the Navajo government and then the tribal council would make the award.
Last month, commanders and vice commanders of the five agency veterans' organizations met twice and voted overwhelmingly against the medal, saying it would belittle the U.S. Medal of Honor.
They noted that the U.S. medal is reserved only for individuals who have gone far beyond the call of duty and shown exceptional valor.
The Navajo veteran leaders also suggested that the tribe's medal be given a different name.
Help-Tulley noted that the council's Human Services Committee, which oversees the Office of Navajo Veterans Affairs, asked for recommendations from the five agency branch offices, but that only Chinle had responded.
Tulley said the cost to mint the medals is not yet known.
She noted that the council would have the final say on creating the medal, and that Morgan would sponsor the enabling legislation.
