Fort Drum Soldier becomes U.S. citizen, hopes to maintain native culture

FORT DRUM, N.Y. -- An American Samoan with a dream of becoming a U.S. citizen got his wish recently at a Syracuse, N.Y., courthouse, where he raised his right hand and swore allegiance to the country he has served for more than 18 years.

"It is something I have wanted to do for a long time," said Staff Sgt. Iakopo Samuelu, a squad leader with 2nd Platoon, 563rd Military Police Company, 91st Military Police Battalion, 10th Sustainment Brigade, 10th Mountain Division (LI). "I knew if I kept putting it off, I would maybe never have the chance to do it."

Samuelu was on block leave when he woke early the morning of April 24, shaved, showered and put on his Army dress uniform. His wife, Tumau, due to have their third child this summer, was not told for what "ceremony" he was dressing up, nor why she and the children had to go.

"He rushed me to get ready," she said. "I thought I forgot a unit function that was not marked on the calendar."

They headed off Fort Drum with YeJie, their 3-year-old daughter, and their son, Mariner, who turns 2 in July, and entered a federal courthouse in downtown Syracuse later that morning. Tumau Samuelu said she was even more confused when she walked in.

"I thought that the ceremony was for (a member of his unit), until we arrived, and none of the participants were his Soldiers," she said. "So it was a nice surprise to find out that it was his own citizenship ceremony."

'Be All You Can Be'

Samuelu lived in his home village of Nu'uuli in the South Pacific when he enlisted in November 1993. He recalls seeing Army advertisements around that time encouraging people to "Be All You Can Be."

He said he ultimately joined the Army "to pursue a better way of life."

But beyond the opportunities the military presented, the middle child of seven said he also felt a fierce loyalty to the U.S.

"If I was not proud to serve this country, I would not be in this uniform," said the 42-year-old Soldier, who deployed with his unit to Afghanistan on Saturday.

Before coming to Fort Drum last summer, Samuelu served for four years with the 55th MP Company in Korea. He previously spent two years at Fort Drum with the 511th MP Company and deployed with them to Iraq.

A senior NCO with his current unit calls Samuelu a strong and compassionate leader, whose capability as an MP provides other Soldiers a good example to follow.

"Staff Sgt. Samuelu is one of our quiet professionals -- a competent and caring squad leader who is an asset to his platoon," said 1st Sgt. Michael Hammond, 563rd MP Company first sergeant. "He truly cares a great deal for the unit and his Soldiers.

"I couldn't be prouder that he has earned his U.S. citizenship," Hammond added.

American Samoa

With a population of less than 70,000 residents, American Samoa is one of the smallest of the populated U.S. territories. Unlike Guam, Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands, however, its residents are U.S. nationals, not citizens.

Still, Samuelu said the classification has little effect on the rights of the people.

"American Samoa is a part of the U.S.," Samuelu said. "The only thing we cannot do is vote for the president."

After leaving American Samoa for boot camp at Fort McClellan, Ala., Samuelu said he very quickly adapted to Army life. He noted how the heavy structure of military living was not a major departure from what he grew accustomed to in American Samoa.

He explained that the leader of his family, the late High Talking Chief Laau Seui, an uncle whom he considered a "second father," was not unlike an Army commander. While Seui set the agenda for the community, everyday business was administered by the "talking chiefs," similar to unit NCOs, who voiced the high chief's opinions and supervised events and activities, Samuelu said.

His 68-year-old father, Iakopo Malaefono Ti'a Samuelu Sr., was a talking chief.

Hierarchy is a critical part of American Samoan culture. Samuelu expressed his own concern for carrying on those customs and traditions with his own Family. Because the Samoan language is a part of that, he speaks to his children in his native tongue, while his wife speaks to them in English.

One day, Samuelu said, he will return to his home village, where he will undergo an agonizing rite of passage that he missed out on as a young man.

Samoa's traditional male tattoo, or Pe'a, a lengthy ritual done with black ink, stretches from the lower back around to the stomach and down the groin and buttocks areas to the knees.

"I would say that the body tattoo for young men shows they are ready to take part and assume (their role) in family gatherings," Samuelu explained.

The native Pacific Islander said it is customary for the artist to sit with two assistants who stretch the skin and wipe away excess ink as he taps lines and symbols into the skin with two sticks. In the distance, close family members often cheer for the participant or sing songs in support.

Samuelu said he attended many such ceremonies as a child with his father, who has the elaborate tattoo himself.

"It's like a sacred art," he said. "And I've always told my dad that I would get one, because he has one."

Other than a few unique rituals like Pe'a, Samuelu said life as a child growing up in American Samoa consisted mostly of community and a hearty dose of religion. Although Christian missionary influences altered some traditions, he said many American Samoans have held on to their culture.

"The way we were taught growing up is we wake up, do our chores and go to school," Samuelu said. "After that, we go back to the preacher's house for Bible school, or we go to our high chief's house to serve, (which included) cooking for the whole family.

"After dinner," he added, "the high chief would tell us we could go, and that's when we broke off and went with our own respective families."

Food literally grows on trees in American Samoa, said Samuelu, noting that in addition to breadfruit, bananas, coconut and taro, the population enjoys a steady diet of fish, pork and chicken.

Far from home

Samuelu said only two of his six siblings still live in American Samoa. His oldest brother is a government employee while a younger sister cares for their 70-year-old mother, Fiafia, and their father, who recently underwent triple bypass heart surgery.

"I would say it is hard for my parents," said Samuelu, visibly pained by the thought of his father's suffering. "As much as they want for all of us to be there to support my dad, it is very hard to do."

In Hawaii last summer, while transitioning from Korea to Fort Drum, Samuelu was able to spend time with his parents as his father received medical treatment in Honolulu.

By request, Samuelu has spent nearly half of his Army career in Korea because it is easier to visit American Samoa from there. He said it takes him two flights to make the journey instead of the typical four connections from northern New York.

A major reason that he wants quick access to American Samoa is his father's poor health.

"The way I was raised up, it was very (steeped) in custom and traditions," Samuelu said. "If something happened, and my dad or uncle wanted me home, I jumped on a plane to make sure I was there."

Samuelu had to make a very difficult decision earlier this year, when the uncle who once closely mentored him passed away.

High Talking Chief Seui, who was also a high-ranking official in American Samoa government, was his mother's youngest brother. He died while Samuelu was at the Senior Leaders Course in Fort Leonard Wood, Mo.

"I was about to quit SLC school and go home to attend his funeral," he said. "(But) I remembered one of his quotes, as I was growing up: 'Your family will always be your family. But you have to strive for a better future for your family.' In the end I stayed and completed school."

Samuelu is still striving. He has not only excelled as an Army staff NCO, but he also completed a long and tedious process, achieving his dreams of becoming a U.S. citizen just weeks before deploying to a war zone.

"I was definitely proud of him when he took his oath with our daughter standing beside him," said Tumau Samuelu, who hopes to one day join her husband and children by becoming a U.S. citizen.