College group honors veterans
Linda Sappington
Participants in Friday's Round Dance at Salish Kootenai College circle a group of hand drummers.
Linda Sappington
Veterans were honored at Friday's Round Dance at Salish Kootenai College.
Linda Sappington
Organizers from the Circle of Trust open Friday's Round Dance at Salish Kootenai College.
Linda Sappington
Lance Cpl. Tomy Parker speaks at the Round Dance to honor veterans.
Linda Sappington
Tony Incashola reminded people to honor veterans every day.
Linda Sappington
Members of the Veteran Warrior Society led the procession.
Linda Sappington
Stan Kenmille, Army National Guard, stands with his father, Mike Kenmille.
Hey savvy news reader! Thanks for choosing local.
You are now reading
1 of 3 free articles.
Veterans from all branches of service were honored Friday evening as the Circle of Trust group from Salish Kootenai College hosted a Round Dance.
Veteran-themed posters created by Two Eagle River School students decorated the walls in the Joe McDonald Health Center Camas Room. Accompanied by at least a dozen drummers on hand drums, members of the Veteran Warrior Society opened the ceremony carrying flags of America, Canada, the Flathead Indian Reservation and the Eagle staff.
Tony Incashola, Salish Culture Committee, thanked veterans for “protecting our values, protecting our land, and protecting our freedom.”
Incashola urged those in attendance to honor veterans daily, because “we don’t know what he or she had to go through to serve and come home. They come home a different person because of what they have seen. Some don’t come home at all,” he said. “Even when they are home, they’re still gone. War is one of the worst things a human can experience. We need to be willing to stand by them and help them.”
Guest speaker Lance Corporal Tomy Parker of Ronan addressed the crowd briefly, reminding them that wounds most veterans take home from war are not as visible as his own.
“The majority of veterans, you can’t see their wounds, yet those people are just as wounded,” he said.
Parker was on foot patrol in Sangin, Afghanistan on Dec. 11, 2010, when he stepped on an improvised explosive device, resulting in a left leg amputation at the hip, a right leg amputation above the knee and all fingers of his left hand lost, leaving only his thumb.
