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The Peak We Call Piestewa

  • Writer: MIP Author
    MIP Author
  • 10 hours ago
  • 7 min read

The story of Lori Ann Piestewa, the Hopi soldier whose name is carried by one of Phoenix’s most recognizable mountains.


Piestewa Peak viewed from Wrigley Mansion. 2,610 feet (796 m) is the second highest point in the Phoenix Mountains https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piestewa_Peak
Piestewa Peak viewed from Wrigley Mansion. 2,610 feet (796 m) is the second highest point in the Phoenix Mountains https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piestewa_Peak

Piestewa Peak rises above central Phoenix, surrounded by homes, city streets and miles of desert trails. Thousands of people see the mountain every day. Hikers climb its steep Summit Trail, families explore the surrounding preserve, and drivers pass beneath it on State Route 51.


The name Piestewa belongs to Army Specialist Lori Ann Piestewa, a Hopi woman from Tuba City, Arizona. She was a daughter, mother, athlete and soldier. On March 23, 2003, she was killed during an ambush near Nasiriyah, Iraq, becoming the first Native American woman known to have died in combat while serving in the United States military.


Naming the mountain for Lori placed her story permanently within the Arizona landscape. Every person who says Piestewa Peak speaks the name of a woman whose life was grounded in family, community and service.



A Daughter of Tuba City


Lori Ann Piestewa was born in Tuba City on December 14, 1979. Her father, Terry Piestewa, was Hopi, and her mother, Priscilla “Percy” Baca Piestewa, was Hispanic. Lori was the youngest of four children.


The National Museum of the United States Army records her Hopi name as Köcha-hon-mana, translated as White Bear Girl. Her parents made sure their children were connected to both sides of their family and culture.


Service was already part of Lori’s family history. Her grandfather served in the Army during World War II. Her father served in Vietnam. Lori continued that tradition, but the qualities people remember in her appeared long before she entered the military.

Piestewa’s legacy - Symbolizing courage, dedication, and the contributions of Indigenous women in the armed forces. The patch serves as a tribute to her memory and a reminder of the sacrifices Native women have made in military service. Source

She was athletic, determined and deeply committed to the people around her. Lori began playing softball when she was eight years old. The day before a championship game, a ball struck her in the face and broke her nose. Her family tried to persuade her not to play, but she insisted because her team was depending on her. They went on to win the game.

Her brother Adam later explained her decision simply: “She couldn’t not play.”


In high school, Lori joined Junior ROTC and became a commander in the program. She planned to attend college, but her life changed when she became pregnant during her senior year. She graduated early in December 1997 and began building a life for her growing family.


Lori eventually returned to Tuba City with her son and daughter. She began considering the Army as a way to provide stability and opportunity for her children. Her mother later recalled that Lori wanted to support them, build a home and take care of her family.



Becoming a Soldier


Lori entered the Army on March 30, 2001. She completed basic training at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, followed by Advanced Individual Training at Fort Lee, Virginia.

She was assigned to the 507th Maintenance Company at Fort Bliss, Texas. Her work included clerical responsibilities, tracking supplies and helping support the company’s operations.


At Fort Bliss, Lori roomed with Private First Class Jessica Lynch. The two became close friends and referred to each other as “roommate” or “roomie.” In January 2003, the 507th learned that it would be deployed to Iraq. Lori was still recovering from shoulder surgery and was expected to remain at Fort Bliss. She asked to deploy with her company. She wanted to remain with her unit and be in a position where she could help. Before leaving, Lori told a friend, “I’m not trying to be a hero.”


On February 17, 2003, her parents traveled to Fort Bliss to see her before the deployment. Lori spoke about the importance of knowing that her family and children would be cared for while she was away. She told an interviewer that she was ready to go.




Iraq War, March 23, 2003


During the opening days of the Iraq War, the 507th Maintenance Company was traveling in a convoy through southern Iraq. The unit was transporting supplies when it missed a checkpoint and entered Nasiriyah.


On March 23, the convoy came under attack. Lori was driving a Humvee near the back of the convoy when Jessica Lynch’s vehicle became disabled. Lori noticed that her friend was in trouble, pulled over and brought Jessica into the Humvee. As Lori attempted to move through the attack, a rocket propelled grenade struck the vehicle. Lori, Jessica and other surviving members of the convoy were captured. Lori later died from her injuries in a hospital in Nasiriyah. She was 23 years old.


At the time of the ambush, Lori held the rank of private first class. The Army promoted her posthumously to specialist. She received the Purple Heart and Prisoner of War Medal.

Lori became the first woman serving in the United States military to be killed during the Iraq War. The National Museum of the United States Army also recognizes her as the first Native woman soldier killed in action on foreign soil.


News coverage soon focused heavily on Jessica Lynch’s capture and rescue. Jessica has repeatedly redirected that attention toward Lori, identifying her friend as the hero of the ambush. She later named her daughter Dakota Ann in Lori’s memory.


Back in Tuba City, people placed lights on their porches to help guide Lori home. Her name was written in white stone on a mesa overlooking the community. What the rest of the country experienced as breaking news was deeply personal for the people who knew her as a daughter, sister, mother, teammate and friend.


Lori became the first woman serving in the United States military to be killed during the Iraq War and the first Native woman soldier killed in action on foreign soil.

A Mountain Receives Her Name


On April 17, 2003, less than a month after Lori’s death, Arizona officially renamed the Phoenix mountain Piestewa Peak. The mountain’s former name contained the word “squaw,” a vulgar racial and sexual insult used by generations of settlers to demean Indigenous women from many tribal nations. Native people in Arizona had sought its removal for years.


Replacing that name with Piestewa did more than remove an insult from the landscape. It placed the name of an honorable Native woman and fallen American soldier above the city.

The U.S. Board on Geographic Names approved Piestewa Peak for federal use on April 10, 2008. The official Geographic Names Information System record identifies the mountain as being named for Lori Piestewa.


State Route 51, which passes near the mountain, also became the Piestewa Freeway in her honor. Lori’s name is now spoken throughout Phoenix by hikers, residents, visitors and people traveling across the Valley.



Remembering Lori Through Community and Sport


Lori’s name is also carried by the Lori Piestewa National Native American Games. Established in 2003, the Games honor her life while bringing together Indigenous athletes, families and communities from across North America.


The connection to athletics is especially fitting. Sports had been part of Lori’s life since childhood, and her family remembered the loyalty and determination she showed toward her teammates.The first Games began with only a small number of participants. By July 2026, more than 4,000 athletes representing 27 tribes competed in basketball, softball, wrestling and other sports in Mesa. The Games allow new generations to learn Lori’s name through competition, community and shared experience. They remember her as a soldier, but they also reflect the athlete and teammate she had been throughout her life.


Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community (SRPMIC) host Piestewa National Native American Games in honor of Lori Piestewa (Hopi), who was the first Native American woman to die in combat while serving in the U.S. military.

In 2018, Lori was included in the inaugural group of inductees into the National Native American Hall of Fame. Her name also appears on military buildings, memorials and veterans’ organizations across the country. These honors cannot restore the life that was lost or replace Lori for her children and family. They keep the public memory of her from being reduced to a single day in Iraq.



The Peak We Call Piestewa


For many people in Phoenix, Piestewa Peak is part of the background of daily life. It appears between buildings, beyond freeway traffic and above residential streets. From its trails, hikers can look across the city in nearly every direction.


Piestewa is not an abstract word placed on a map. It is the family name of Lori Ann Piestewa, a Hopi woman from Tuba City who grew up playing softball, became a Junior ROTC commander, raised two children and followed her father and grandfather into military service.


She was a soldier who chose to remain with her unit. During the attack near Nasiriyah, she stopped for a friend whose vehicle had broken down. She was killed at 23, leaving behind her children, parents, siblings and community.


The former mountain name demeaned Native women. The name Piestewa honors one.

Each time someone says Piestewa Peak, Lori’s name returns to the story of Arizona. It rises above Phoenix as a remembrance of her life, her service and the people who continue to carry her memory.



Sources and Further Reading

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