Family mourns loss of Clifton Yazzie

By Brian Hassler
Staff Writer

NENAHNEZAD — When Michelle Yazzie thinks of her husband, she doesn't think of him as a soldier, a Kirtland High School graduate or as a member of a state championship basketball team.

Instead she prefers to remember Clifton Yazzie as the loving husband and father that he was for the last few years.

On Friday she received the news from two soldiers on her doorstep that her husband of almost four years had been killed in Al Huwijah, Iraq when an improvised explosive device took the lives of Sgt. Clifton "Tigger" Yazzie as well as three other soldiers.

"He was a good person, and I won't ever get tired of saying that," Yazzie said of her husband. "As a father, he did the best he could, and if he knew he needed to do better, he would."

Yazzie smiles when thinking of the efforts her husband went to in order to avoid changing diapers, even volunteering to make dinner.

"He was more into feeding the babies than changing diapers," she said. "Clifton would say 'I'll cook dinner,' and the only thing he could cook good was macaroni and cheese. He was just a kid at heart and would play with them all the time."

Even when times were rough and the family was feeling down, Clifton would find ways to make her laugh and would bounce around the room, a habit that earned him the nickname "Tigger."

"One second he'd be standing beside you or behind you, and the next thing you knew, he was on the other side of the room," she said. "He was always bouncing around and definitely earned his nickname."

The Yazzie family members received word of their son and husband's death on Friday when soldiers appeared first at the home of his parents, Jeanette and Clifton "C.Y." Yazzie, before contacting his wife at her grandmother's home.

"Her expression froze when they stepped in front of her in their uniforms," said Christina Tso, a relative of the family. "She (Michelle) stopped them after they said 'we regret to inform you...' because she didn't want to hear what they were going to say."

That evening the Yazzie family gathered together, and by 8 p.m. there were over 100 people in the Yazzie home offering support.

For Tso, one of Yazzie's comments to his wife proved to be especially touching.

"He said that he loved her and that he wanted her to raise their kids and to let his family know that his kids loved them," said Tso. "He said that when he came home he wanted everyone to be there. We didn't realize that he'd be coming home like this, but everyone will be there."

That support could be seen on Tuesday evening at the Nenahnezad Chapter House as the community gathered together to support the Yazzie family and discuss their feelings towards Clifton Yazzie.

"This meeting took longer than I expected, but it's good to hear all the comforting words of the people that had cared for my son and the support that they showed for us," said Jeanette Yazzie.

"It's been very rough and I still can't believe that my son is gone," she added. "When they were talking, I was sitting up front and asking myself if I was dreaming or if I was watching a movie. It's still unbelievable."

Sgt. Clifton Yazzie is survived by his wife Michelle, their children Chaynitta, 3, and Cayden, 18 months, as well as his parents, his brother Clinton and his sister Rhea Badonie.

"Last Tuesday I spoke to him and he just wanted to know how our kids were doing," said Michelle Yazzie. "Whether it was a new word our son had learned or what our daughter was doing, he just wanted to hear how they were doing. He said 'don't forget me' and said he wanted everyone to get along."

"I want to let everyone know from the bottom of my heart that we are thankful for what everyone has done and is doing for us," Yazzie added.

A service for Clifton Yazzie will be on February 8 in Kentucky for those that were killed on Friday, but a service in New Mexico hasn't been planned yet.

"Any that are interested in donating to the Yazzie family can go to the Four Corners Credit Union in Kirtland and donate to the Clifton, Chaynitta and Cayden special Tigger account," said Tso.

— Brian Hassler is The Independent's Four Corners reporter based in Shiprock. Contact him at (505) 360-7862 or via email at brianhassler@hotmail.com