Introduction:

During WWII the US government needed to create a code that other countries wouldn't be able to crack. They turned to the Native Americans, and used their language to communicate without the Japanese ever breaking it. Without the Navajo Code Talkers, as they became known, they may have never been able to defeat Japan in the war! They were so valuable that for years after the war the Code Talkers werent even allowed to tell their families about their heroic contributions. 

Thomas was playing football when he heard about the attack on Pearl Harbor. He immediately rushed to sign up for the US marines. He wanted to defend his country.

*There has been an attack on Pearl Harbor*

After he signed up, Thomas got on a train from Gallup, New Mexico to boot camp in California. They even gave him a first class ticket for volunteering to join the Marines! He met other men on the train who were also headed to boot camp and made friends.

When He got to bootcamp, Thomas was surprised. He had been approved to join as a gunner, but a man told him that because he was Navajo, he would be a Code Talker. The man handed Thomas a book with 200 words to memorize, and told him to know them by the next day. Thomas was confused, "there must be a mistake" he said, "I barely speak any Navajo and I am going to be a gunner". The man told him there was no mistake, and to start reading. 

Thomas began studying the codes that night, and as he did he found himself smiling. The alphabetical code he was memorizing was simple, each english letter corresponded to an animal in Navajo, and he knew the animals from his childhood!

It wasn't long before Thomas was ready to enter the field. He was a fast learner, and spent all day practicing. He already knew Morse code and was made a radio operator. This is how he found himself aboard a ship headed off to fight at Iwo Jima, Japan.