Memorial honors US Special Forces

Elite U.S. Army Special Forces members, past and present, gathered Saturday, April 25, at the Northern California Veterans' Cemetery in Igo, west of Anderson, to dedicate a special memorial honoring all Special Forces warriors living and dead.

It was a very meaningful ceremony made doubly so by several of the speakers who had been invited to share their thoughts and experiences.

The first of these was Roger Cauthen, also known as Yellow Knife. A Lakota Sioux mixed blood, Cauthen is a member of the Toka'La' (Kitfox) Warrior Society, one of two Native American warrior societies that trace their origins to the scouts who provided their services to infiltrate the territories of warring tribes, gather surveillance on the strengths and weaknesses of those tribes and return undetected to report their findings to the chieftains of neighboring people, Cauthen explained.

"In Lakota tradition, every man was trained to be a defender of the land and of the tribe. But they also were familiar with the habits, customs and traditions of their enemies," he said.

That tradition is being carried out today in 48 countries and 17 states by members of the U.S. Army's Special Forces teams, also known as the Green Berets, said Ronnie A McCan, president of the national board of officers for The Special Forces Association based in Fayetteville, N.C.

The need for Special Forces operations increases every day, McCan noted. The rescue by U.S. Navy Special Forces (Seals) of an American ship captain captured recently by Somali pirates off the eastern coast of Africa is the most recent example that has been publicized.

However, due to the highly classified nature of many Special Forces operations, most missions do not happen in the public eye, McCan noted.

Recently, President Barack Obama signed orders increasing the number of U.S. Army Special Forces by another battalion, adding nearly 4,000 more Green Berets to the 5,600 active personnel currently serving the nation. The association that McCan leads includes 85 chapters and 10,000 members worldwide.

"This is not a memorial just to those Green Berets who have paid for our freedom with their lives, but to all Geen Berets," he said.

McCan was one of several state and national dignitaries invited to participate in the memorial dedication by Major John Cleckner, US Special Forces (retired). Cleckner serves as president of the local Special Forces Association, Chapter 89 - also known as the SFC Allen C. Johnson Memorial Chapter.

It was Chapter 89 that gathered donations to erect the concrete and etched marble slab memorial.

Cleckner also served as Master of Ceremonies for the memorial's dedication.

The memorial also has an Anderson connection. It was constructed lovingly by the Puhlman family, owners of Outdoor Creations in Anderson.

The memorial features, in Latin, the official motto of the U.S. Army Special Forces: <B>De Oppresso Liber</B>, which means <B>To Liberate the Oppressed</B>.

A green beret is etched into the marble slab capping the monument's face.