Lummi tribal members from Washington State presented two healing poles in a 90 minute ceremony outside of the Pentagon September 19. The totem poles were in honor of the 182 victims who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks on the Pentagon September 11, 2001. Two horizontal poles, Liberty and Freedom, along with a cross piece, Sovereignty, were presented to Paul Wolfowitz, the Deputy Secretary of Defense.
According to The Olympian, Wolfowitz expressed his gratefulness to the tribe by saying, "Thank you once again for this gift to our nation. Thank you for honoring our country's men and women who lost their lives on 9/11. Thank you for remembering our veterans and the brave service men and women who wear the uniform of the United States today."
Lisa Dolan accepted the totem poles on behalf of families who lost loved ones in the terrorist attacks on the Pentagon September 11, 2001. Dolan was the wife of the Navy Captain Robert Dolan, who lost his life during the terrorist attacks. During her acceptance speech Dolan said, "Your gesture brings us one step further in the healing process just as support of healing and remembering ensure that our loved ones will never be forgotten" a reported by The Olympian.
Jewell James, a master carver and member of the Lummi tribe, explained to grieving friends and families at Sunday's ceremony that the two eagles carved into Sovereignty symbolized the price of protecting the nation's freedom. These intricately carved totem poles are an important aspect of the Lummi's religious tradition.
These totem poles were the third set of poles made by the Lummi tribe in honor of 9/11 victims. All of the poles have been healing poles, which act as symbols of caring and hope for survivors of 9/11. The Lummi's gave a pole to New York City in September 2002 in honor of those who lost their lives in the attacks on the World Trade Center. The Lummi gave another pole to Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
This set of healing poles will remain in the historic Congressional Cemetery until the fall of 2005 after which they will become part of the 9/11 Pentagon Memorial Grove on Kingman Island in the District of Columbia.
