It was my great honor to receive a commission to create two original steel sculptures for the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe Veterans Memorial being established on the corner of Highway E and Highway K at Lac Courte Oreilles.
It was my great honor to receive a commission to create two original steel sculptures for the Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe Veterans Memorial being established on the corner of Highway E and Highway K at Lac Courte Oreilles.The Lac Courte Oreilles Ojibwe Veteran’s Memorial is a comprehensive development that includes a beautiful black and white granite tribute to all the service branches, circle of flags, renovation of the historic Kinnamon School as an Ojibwe Cultural Center, and two of my sculptures; Eagle in Flight and a steel sculpted recreation of the LCO Veterans Eagle Staff.
Eagle in Flight was installed in the spring of 2013 and dedicated at a Memorial Day Veterans Ceremony attended by one hundred fifty people. Eagle in Flight is a six-foot steel and stainless steel fabricated eagle that sits atop a ten foot tall tree-like post. The watchful eagle sculpture looks toward the granite veteran’s memorial.
The LCO Veterans Eagle Staff was installed in the fall of 2013 and dedicated at the Veteran’s Day Memorial service on 11-11-2013. A complex sculpture with many fine details, the LCO Veterans Eagle Staff displays fifty-two handcrafted steel eagle feathers and two life size stainless steel eagle tail feathers. In addition, details include steel sculpted ribbons, bells, beaded regalia, leather straps, buttons, leather ties and additional smaller bird feathers. Stainless steel accents were added to each individual eagle feather and small stainless steel abalone shells decorate the staff. A stars and stripes pattern was carved and hammered into the steel body of the eagle staff.
It is truly an honor to be asked to sculpt these two dedications to Ojibwe veterans. I am grateful for the dedicated service of all veterans.
The granite Ojibwe Veterans Memorial honors the veterans of all branches of the service. The LCO Eagle Staff is dedicated to the Ojibwe warriors who fought on the cultural battle grounds over the years.
Rusty Barber read Chairman Mic Isham’s Veteran’s Day address to those in attendance:
“On behalf of the people of Lac Courte Oreilles I want to thank all our Veterans and their families for their tremendous sacrifices in the protection of our freedoms at home and abroad. I also want to thank those warriors from throughout the years who have risked personal injury, risk of arrest and confiscation of their property on behalf of the Ojibwe people to regain recognition of our Treaty Reserved Rights ? this includes those who have represented us at boat landings, boardrooms or courtrooms.” “To all our Nations warriors, Lac Courte Oreilles
Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians says CHI-MIGWETCH!!”
