Lori Ann Piestewa (/paɪˈɛstəwɑː/ py-ES-tə-wah;[2] December 14, 1979 – March 23, 2003) was a United States Army soldier killed during the Iraq War.
A member of the Quartermaster Corps, she died in the same Iraqi attack in which fellow soldiers Shoshana Johnson and Piestewa's friend Jessica Lynch were injured.
[7] The Piestewa family resided in Tuba City, a town located on the Navajo Indian Reservation in Coconino County.
A video of some of the American prisoners of war, including Piestewa (filmed shortly before she died in an Iraqi hospital), was later shown around the world on Al Jazeera television.
All around Tuba City, signs were hung out telling people: "Put your porch light on, show Lori the way home."
Lynch has repeatedly stated that Piestewa was the true heroine of the ambush and named her daughter Dakota Ann in honor of her fallen comrade.
[12] On November 30, 2011, the Directorate of Training Sustainment headquarters at Fort Moore, Georgia was named Piestewa Hall in her honor.
[13] Her death led to a rare joint prayer gathering between members of the Hopi and Navajo tribes, which have had a centuries-old rivalry.