Lloyd Oliver, among last of original Code Talkers, dies at 87
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[quote=AZcentral]
[img]http://i.azcentral.com/i/sized/7/E/7/e298/j350/PHP4D84DBE53B7E7.jpg[/img]
In this Sept. 10, 2009 file photo, Navajo Code Talker Lloyd Oliver displays a photo of himself in what had been his home on the Yavapai Indian reservation in Camp Verde, Ariz.
It took a little effort to get Lloyd Oliver into a dress coat in 2001 as he prepared to receive a 24-karat Congressional Gold Medal for being one of the original 29 Navajo Code Talkers. But when he saw the Marine Corps C-9 plane sent by his fellow Marines to take him to the Washington, D.C., celebration, his shy demeanor fell away and he beamed.
Oliver, who died Wednesday at age 87 of pancreatitis, is being remembered as a humble man, a talented silversmith and proud patriot.
The Glendal e resident was the second-to-last remaining Navajo Code Talker of the original group that designed an unbreakable oral code using their native tongue to confuse the Japanese during World War II. The last survivor, Chester Nez, lives in New Mexico.
Yvonne Murphy, recording secretary for Navajo Code Talkers Association, said the loss of Oliver is "a sad day in Navajo history."
"He was one of the ones who laid the foundation for the design of the language that the Code Talkers used," Murphy said.
Oliver's death is a reminder to honor the work of the original Code Talkers and the wave of hundreds of other Code Talkers who followed, Murphy said.
Oliver, who was born in Shiprock, N.M., would have turned 88 April 23.
In 1942 at age 19, he left the reservation to help in the war. After training as a Code Talker, he served on the islands of Guadalcanal, New Britain, Saipan and Peleliu. He was a corporal when the Marines cut him loose in 1945.
Over the years, his memory of the war faded but some never vanished, including the night when he was in a foxhole on Guadalcanal and "the bombs rained" down, knocking him unconscious. When he awoke, bodies of his fellow Marines and of Japanese soldiers were scattered around him.
During the 2001 celebration, President George W. Bush noted the importance of finally recognizing the original group. "Today, we honor 29 Native Americans who, in a desperate hour, gave their country a service only they could give," he said.
When asked by an Arizona Republic reporter in 2001 about his legacy, Oliver was hesitant. "Am I a hero? I don't know," Oliver said after some thought. "Yeah. I'll be a hero," he finally said. "I'll go for that. Yeah."
Getting to serve his country was an honor for Oliver, said Marilynn Atkinson, who developed a deep friendship with him starting in the 1970s.
Oliver, a silversmith, made jewelry that Atkinson sold in her store, Atkinson's Trading Post in Scottsdale.
"He was such a good soul," she said. "He was always very quiet, soft-spoken and a little shy. But he was just somebody you enjoyed being around."
And he was talented, she said. "Back then, silversmiths didn't sign their work but had their own distinctive style. He always liked the heavier weight of silver and working with larger stones."
Oliver sold pieces in her store into the 1990s, and they stayed friends beyond that.
When it came time for him to travel to D.C., Murphy said he didn't talk about it much but was willing to go through a slight metamorphosis, clothes-wise, to prepare.
Oliver had simple tastes, favoring polyester pants, a plain shirt, sneakers and a purple Diamondbacks cap. By the time he met President Bush, it became gray jacket, brown vest, white shirt and brown cowboy boots. But he put the purple baseball cap back on.
Atkinson said Oliver never talked much about his time helping the country win the war.
"Getting the medal didn't change him much," she said. "But he was proud of what he had done. He couldn't wait to show off his medal."
Murphy, whose father, Raymond Smith Sr., was one of the Code Talkers who came after the original group, said Oliver's contribution "speaks volumes for himself, the Navajo people and the United States."
"It was such a complex code that just couldn't be broken," Murphy said.
Oliver is survived by his wife, five children, six stepchildren, 19 grandchildren and 25 great-grandchildren.
His memorial is scheduled for 10 a.m. today at Gila River Crossing Presbyterian Church, on 51st Avenue, south of Dobbins Road in Laveen.
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Wow, that's sad, what he and those other men did was legendary and massively helpful.
Offtopic:
When my I was very young, around 10, my family was having a rough time with cash, my dad took a side job and started cabbing occasionally around my city. One night he was driving around when he picked up a star in the movie Wind Talkers, a movie about the navajo code in the war. Adam Beach, the actor who played the Navajo soldier was in town to receive some aboriginal success award.
Using the navajo language was stupid as heck. Real encryption was the way to go even at that time.
[QUOTE=PvtCupcakes;28794762]Using the navajo language was stupid as heck. Real encryption was the way to go even at that time.[/QUOTE]
You know it was the audible language and not written.
[QUOTE=PvtCupcakes;28794762]Using the navajo language was stupid as heck. Real encryption was the way to go even at that time.[/QUOTE]
Who cares if it was extremely effective and never cracked, right?
[QUOTE=PvtCupcakes;28794762]Using the navajo language was stupid as heck. Real encryption was the way to go even at that time.[/QUOTE]
Hi, I'm PvtCupcakes, certified expert in 20/20 hindsight and judging decisions I will never have to face.
We were just talking about the code talkers in my WW2 college course today. They helped us in the war greatly...
:patriot:
[QUOTE=PvtCupcakes;28794762]Using the navajo language was stupid as heck. Real encryption was the way to go even at that time.[/QUOTE]
fuck offffff
Rip.
You did good boy, you did good
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