Lawton-Fort Sill’s Buffalo Soldiers honored by NAACP with community service award

Fierce in battle and with high respect for the buffalo, it was the Buffalo Soldiers who built Fort Sill. It was the Buffalo Soldiers who built roads and protected the community from outlaws and bandits.

Lawton-Fort Sill’s 9th & 10th Horse Cavalry Buffalo Soldiers are on a mission to keep the Buffalo Soldier’s legacy alive and were recently honored by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) with the Julius E. Williams Community Service Award.

Lawton-Fort Sill’s Chapter President Tony Washington received the award during the NAACP Armed Services & Veteran Affairs Reception on July 31 in Boston, “in recognition of a veterans organization that has influenced broad service initiatives to develop veterans and community service partnerships.”

“No other organization in Oklahoma has ever won it,” Washington said. “We accepted it with dignity and honor.”

To keep the legacy and history of the Buffalo Soldiers alive, Lawton-Fort Sill’s 9th & 10th Horse Cavalry tries to provide educational experiences by going to events, schools, churches and other invitations by organizations around Lawton. The effort paid off when the Buffalo Soldiers were approached by the local NAACP, who asked for permission to submit the veteran’s organization as a candidate, Washington recalled, adding that the winner was selected from candidates all over the country.

Although Washington said he felt very honored, he also emphasized that winning an award would not be the reason for the organization’s contributions to the community.

“We want to help, we enjoy doing things for the community,” he said.

“My uncle was stationed at Fort Sill, he was a Buffalo Soldier,” Trooper George W. Noland said. This, in turn, motivated him to join the 9th & 10th Horse Cavalry. And for Trooper Walter Brooks, it is simply “a great honor to keep the legacy alive.”