‘Defending our home’: Native veterans reflect on service

Greater percentage of Native Americans served in U.S. armed forces By the time Rochelle Goins-Hetzel enlisted at 18 in the U.S. Air Force, she had already faced more than her fair share of formidable challenges. But amid the tumult of her life, there was one constant: The land. “Every Indigenous person, whether they know it or not, is intrinsically connected to the land,” said Goins-Hetzel, who is of Cherokee, Nansemond and Tuscarora heritage living in Oak Harbor and an active member of the Samish Nation Canoe Family in Anacortes. “The land provides us with the waters that we need for healing and ceremony. It gives us food. It gives us medicine. It’s everything we need. And so we need to advocate for it.” Goins-Hetzel, 59, is one of 140,000 to 150,000 living Native American and Alaska Native veterans that will observe Veterans Day on Nov. 11, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

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