Roberta Stewart is shown Saturday next to a wreath with the Wiccan symbol, a pentacle, during a ceremony at the Northern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Fernley. Stewart's husband, Sgt. Patrick Stewart, was killed in Afghanistan last year and Roberta Stewart fought for the right to place the symbol on a plaque at the cemetery. Photo by Cathleen Allison/The Associated Press.

FERNLEY -- About 50 supporters of fallen Sgt. Patrick Stewart gathered Saturday to dedicate a plaque bearing the Wiccan symbol in his memory.

The plaque is the first of its kind in the nation to be installed at a veterans cemetery.

"It's been 13 months of hell, but I can finally put my husband to rest," said Roberta Stewart, his widow, before a ceremony marking the occasion. "It's a day of closure."

Stewart's plaque on the "Wall of Heroes" at the Northern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery is the first to include the pentacle, a five-pointed star with one point up, enclosed in a circle. Stewart, who was killed Sept. 25, 2005, when his Chinook helicopter was shot down in Afghanistan, practiced the Wiccan faith.

Friends, family and supporters of the effort to have the pentacle recognized by the U.S. government as an "emblem of belief" for use in veterans cemeteries used the occasion both to remember Stewart and to call for the acceptance of the Wiccan symbol.

Stewart's plaque was authorized to include the symbol after Nevada state officials said they control the operation of the veterans cemetery. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has not authorized the use of the pentacle in veterans cemeteries nationally.

A lawsuit was filed Nov. 13 by Americans United for Separation of Church and State against the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs over its refusal to include the Wiccan symbol of faith on its official list of emblems for government headstones and markers. The agency has recognized other emblems over the years, including for atheists, Buddhists and various Christian denominations.

But it was more the memory of Stewart, instead of the controversy surrounding the plaque, that was the focus of the ceremony on a cold and breezy afternoon.

The Rev. Selena Fox, senior minister of a Wiccan group based in Wisconsin called Circle Sanctuary that has been pushing for recognition of the symbol, participated in the dedication, blessing Stewart's plaque with earth, air, fire, water and spirit, which are represented by the five points of the pentacle.

She called the ceremony "historic and wonderful."

"Sergeant Stewart's life is and was about freedom," Fox said. "We honor you and invite you to watch over and bless our dedication today."

On her most recent visit to the cemetery, she saw an empty space where Stewart's plaque was intended to be installed, she said. This time, the proper way to remember Stewart was there for everyone to see, Fox said.

Her comments brought cheers from the crowd.

Stewart was serving with the Nevada Army National Guard when he died.

Roberta Stewart went public in March with her efforts to get the pentacle recognized by the federal government. While that still has not happened, she thanked Gov. Kenny Guinn and other state officials, as well as Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., for their assistance and support.

A statement from Reid said in part: "This day is long overdue."

The Rev. William Chrystal, pastor of the First Congregational Church of Reno and a retired Army chaplain who is also helping Stewart in her quest, said he first met Stewart as his chaplain when Stewart enlisted in the National Guard after Desert Storm.

"I got to know him as an extraordinary young man," he said. "Pat had a wonderful faith."

Chrystal said the right to worship as one chooses is not only a constitutional right, but a "fundamental human right."

The Army allows Wiccan soldiers to list their faith on dog tags. Stewart listed Wiccan on his tags.

Wiccans worship the Earth and believe they must give to the community. Some consider themselves "white" or good witches, pagans or neo-pagans. About 1,800 active-duty service members identify themselves as Wiccans, according to 2005 Defense Department statistics.