Ira Hayes Immortalized In Time

On February 23, 1945, when the battle was still raging, six brave young men set the American flag upright on the hilltop at Iwo Jima during WWII. One of those men was Ira Hayes, a Native American from Arizona. He was one of the two-hundred, fifty marines who rushed up the hill that day to join battle with other Americans from different branches of the military and one of the twenty-seven marines who survived to walk back down. Ira was only 23 years old then.

Joe Rosenthal, a photographer of the Associated Press, was there at that moment in time and had taken the picture of the men helping each other to raise the American flag. This touching and exciting moment of achievement went down in history as one of the most famous photos ever taken. The pride those young men must have felt is portrayed clearly when you view the photo and see their determination to make sure the flag went up. It was something that had to be done and they were there to do it. Ira was the one on the far left, reaching up as high as he could and pushing hard to set the flag pole upright. Ira was born on the Pima Indian Reservation in Sacaton, Arizona on January 12, 1923. The son of struggling farmers, Ira grew up knowing that hunger and the struggle for existence and survival was a natural part of his life. There was never enough to eat. He was just a boy that no one paid any attention to outside his tribe. The arid, poor conditions of life on the reservation left little room for anything other than just trying to stay alive. Ira was the oldest of the eight children of Joe and Nancy Hayes.

The Pima were once very good farmers who could supply their peoples with all the nutritious food they needed. They have inhabited that piece of land for over 2000 years. They were very successful in raising good crops that grew with the aid of the clear sparkling waters of the river that gracefully flowed and nourished their land. Then their water rights were taken away from them, leaving them to starve and struggle for life.

Ira had served in the Civilian Conservation Corps in 1942 then worked as a carpenter. In August 1942, he enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserve and was assigned to Parachute divisions. Promoted to PFC, he joined the 3rd Marine Division at Camp Elliott, California. He became part of the Company K, 3rd Parachute Battalion. By February 1944 he had served 11 months overseas and fought in two campaigns. In June of 1945 he was promoted to Corporal. After Iwo Jima and several other campaigns, Ira was honorably discharged in December 1945. He was awarded a Letter of Commendation with Commendation Ribbon. Ira also received the Commendation Ribbon with "V" combat, Presidential Unit Citation with one star, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with four stars, American Campaign Medal, and the WWII Victory Medal.

The startling contrast between Ira's honorable service time, his historical moment of glory and his personal life was tragically sad. From a sullen hungry little boy who never knew where his next meal would come from to a war hero celebrated for a brief time, Ira struggled to survive physically and emotionally. He could never grasp hold of the one thing that would let him succeed: acceptance. He could not accept the glory, the praise, the honors that were rightfully his. He could not accept the fact that he was worthy.

Back in those early days of our history, there was not sufficient emotional help for the men and women who came back home after living through the horrors of what they faced in wars. There was no one for many of them to turn to and talk about the fears, the tragedies, the horror, the loss of their buddies who were like brothers to them. The memories were carved in their minds, to remain there unaided and deteriorating their lives. If someone had been there to look them in the eyes and know what they were feeling and thinking then maybe more of them could have lived normal, happy lives. If someone had sat down and said, "Talk to me, Ira. Tell me what hurts you. Tell me how you are feeling today, and tell me how I can help you, I am here for you," then maybe Ira could have made it to live a happy life, to overcome the ravished part of his mind, body and soul and bring them together in harmony. The only help he found to make him forget was alcohol and that is what killed him, ending his life much too soon.

Ira Hamilton Hayes died January 24, 1955 and was buried with honors at Arlington National Cemetery. Ira had a short life but he was immortalized with his buddies in a bronze monument which stands 78 feet high, modeled after the picture of the flag raising at Iwo Jima. The figure of each man is 32 feet high. Ira died just ten weeks after the dedication of the Iwo Jima Memorial statue. He could not cope physically and emotionally after he was discharged with his impressive military record. He felt that others had given more, some of them their lives and he missed them greatly. He came home in one piece, but could not forget the buddies left behind who gave the ultimate sacrifice and would never have the chance to live their lives at home. It was very difficult for him to feel worthy of the fame bestowed upon him. When his heart was so heavy and saddened because of the friends who did not survive, he was unable to accept the glory. He had only done what his tribal chief had asked him to do: "Be an honorable warrior and make your people proud". The attention for the heroism worship people wanted to smother him with was too much for him emotionally - but his spirit stands today, as tall and strong and proud as the bronzed statue of him, immortalized in time.

Did Ira leave a legacy for others? Yes - he left the hope that every child needs. He let us know that a starving, solemn little boy with no joy in his life can grow up to accomplish great deeds and heroic acts. Did Ira finally reach acceptance that he was indeed worthy? Has his spirit found the peace he so needed in life? Is his spirit walking in peace on the Ancestral Path with the Grandfathers? I like to think so.

Ellie