“A Place of Honor” Memorial
- Robyn
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
On June 27, 2026, the City of Eden dedicated its new “A Place of Honor” memorial, a lasting tribute to local veterans. Years in the making, the memorial was the vision of Keith Huettig.
During the planning process, Keith — a Vietnam veteran and member of the Eden American Legion — reached out to Friends of Minidoka to ensure the story of the Japanese American men and women from Minidoka who served during World War II would be included. We were honored to support this meaningful memorial in the community neighboring Minidoka National Historic Site, where Keith's family farm employed many people from Minidoka during the war. Keith also researched and wrote the memorial panel dedicated to the heroic soldiers of the 100th Infantry Battalion and the 442nd Regimental Combat Team.
The dedication ceremony was a moving tribute to service, sacrifice, and remembrance. I was honored to provide remarks on behalf of Friends of Minidoka and Minidoka National Historic Site, especially during this year’s 250th celebration of our country and the 25th anniversary of Minidoka National Historic Site becoming a unit of the National Park Service. You can read the Times-News article about the memorial and the dedication, along with my remarks below.
Friends of Minidoka's Remarks at "A Place of Honor" Memorial
Good morning. I’m Robyn Achilles, executive director for Friends of Minidoka, the donor-supported nonprofit partner for Minidoka National Historic Site. This year, Minidoka National Historic Site celebrates its 25th anniversary as a unit of the National Park Service.
Both Friends of Minidoka and Minidoka National Historic Site are honored to be here today as we dedicate this military service memorial in Eden — a place of remembrance, gratitude, and reflection. We gather to honor the veterans whose names and stories are connected to this community – and to ensure that their service, sacrifice, and patriotism are never forgotten.
Memorials like this matter, because they make memory visible. They give us a place to pause, to reflect, and to recognize the men and women who answered the call to serve our nation — often at great personal cost. They remind us that military service is not an abstract concept. It is made up of individual lives: sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, neighbors and friends, each with a story, each with a family, each with a legacy.
Today, as we honor all veterans represented here, we also recognize the Japanese American soldiers connected to Minidoka.
During World War II, more than 13,000 Japanese Americans were unjustly incarcerated at the historic Minidoka War Relocation Center, or Hunt Camp, just a few miles from here. They were forced from their homes and communities, stripped of their freedom, and imprisoned behind barbed wire — not because of anything they had done, but because of fear, racism, and wartime hysteria.
And yet, even while their families remained incarcerated, 1,000 young men and women from Minidoka chose to serve in the United States military. They volunteered or were drafted from behind barbed wire to fight for a country that was denying their own constitutional rights. Their service stands as one of the most powerful examples of courage and patriotism in our nation’s history.
Many served in the famed 442nd Regimental Combat Team and the 100th Infantry Battalion — units that would become among the most decorated in American military history. Others served in the Military Intelligence Service, using their language skills to help shorten the war and save countless lives. Their bravery on the battlefield was extraordinary. But so too was the moral courage their service represents: a belief in the promise of America, even when America had failed them.
That is part of what makes this memorial so important.
It honors military service, but it also tells a fuller American story — one that includes sacrifice, injustice, resilience, and hope. It reminds us that patriotism is not simple, and that love of country can endure even in the face of profound betrayal. It challenges us not only to thank veterans for their service, but to ask what kind of nation their service calls us to be.
May this memorial stand as a tribute to all who served from this community. May it honor the veterans whose courage defended our country. And – may it also help future generations remember the Japanese American soldiers of Minidoka, whose service reminds us that the ideals of freedom, justice, and equality must be protected not only abroad, but also here at home.
May we remember them with gratitude. May we honor them with truth and may we carry their legacy forward.
Thank you.
