[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 55 (Thursday, May 1, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S3899]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        THE STORYTELLER IN STONE

  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, this Saturday, May 3, marks the 50th 
anniversary of sculptor Korczak Ziolkowski's arrival in the Black Hills 
to accept the invitation of the Lakota to create a memorial to honor 
the great warrior and chieftain, Crazy Horse. Carving this great 
monument in the mountain became his life's work, and indeed, the life's 
work of generations of his family.
  He was joined at Thunderhead Mountain by Ruth Ross on June 21, 1947, 
who is now a dear friend of mine. The two married 3 years later, and 
together they made a life raising their 10 children and slowly shaping 
the mountain into the form of Crazy Horse, sitting atop his steed with 
his arm outstretched toward the homelands of the Lakota. Its scale is 
difficult to comprehend. His face alone is so large that all four faces 
carved on Mount Rushmore could fit on its expanse. When it is finished, 
the sculpture will be taller than both the Washington Monument and the 
Great Pyramids. These figures are made all the more remarkable by the 
fact that all of the work at the memorial is privately financed, with 
no support from Government funds. Although Korczak died in 1982, Ruth 
and the children have proudly carried on with this vision.
  No less remarkable is the extraordinary effort made by the Ziolkowski 
family to educate thousands about the lives of Crazy Horse and the 
Lakota people, and to improve the lives of Native Americans around the 
country. Through the Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation, the family 
oversees a cultural and educational center offering college courses, a 
research library, the Indian Museum of North America and educational 
outreach programs. In addition, the Crazy Horse Memorial Native 
American Scholarship Program has already awarded a total of $175,000 in 
educational grants. Ultimately, the family hopes to fulfill Korczak's 
dream of opening a university and medical center on these grounds.
  Korczak liked to call himself a ``storyteller in stone,'' and 
believed that the monument was a noble offering to a man who led his 
people in battle at Little Bighorn and died before surrendering himself 
to a white man's prison. I commend Ruth and all the Ziolkowski family 
in their 50th year of fulfilling this vision.

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