SALEM - Jerrie Hildebrand spent a good part of her afternoon yesterday fielding media inquiries and congratulatory messages from witches.

"I knew something was brewing over the weekend," said Hildebrand, a Salem resident and Wiccan priestess. "Then this morning the reality hit, and it's been e-mail city ever since."

Hildebrand was celebrating yesterday's announcement to add the Wiccan pentacle to the list of emblems allowed in national cemeteries and on government-issued headstones of fallen soldiers.

A settlement between the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Wiccans adds the five-pointed star to the list of "emblems of belief" allowed on VA grave markers.

For Hildebrand, the decision represents an important victory after years of petitioning the government, attending rallies and trying to clear up misconceptions about the Wiccan symbol of faith.

The pentacle has now been added to 38 symbols the VA already permits on gravestones. They include commonly recognized symbols for Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and Judaism, as well as those for smaller religions such as Sufism Reoriented, Eckiankar and the Japanese faith Seicho-No-Ie.

"The impact is huge," Hildebrand said. "It means a community that has served its country and been denied its own freedom now has its freedom."

Hildebrand has been a leading member with Circle Sanctuary, a national pagan group that has spent 10 years trying to convince the government to add the pentacle to the list.

Wicca is a nature-based religion based on respect for the earth, nature and the cycle of the seasons.

Many people mistakenly associate the pentacle with Satanism. Variations of the pentacle not accepted by Wiccans have been used in horror movies as a sign of the devil. In fact, Satanists generally use an upside-down pentacle, often with a goat's head in the center.

"I just think there were a lot of people that had a lot of misinterpretations about what the symbol means," Hildebrand said. "And there were a lot of people that just didn't want the symbol. So it was a long educational process."

Hildebrand's drawing of the pentacle is the one the government will use for veterans' grave markers.

Eleven families nationwide are waiting for grave markers with the pentacle, said Selena Fox, a Wiccan high priestess with Circle Sanctuary in Barneveld, Wis., a plaintiff in the lawsuit.

The settlement calls for the pentacle, whose five points represent earth, air, fire, water and spirit, to be placed on grave markers within 14 days for those who have pending requests with the VA.

"I am glad this has ended in success in time to get markers for Memorial Day," Fox said.

The VA sought the settlement in the interest of the families involved and to save taxpayers the expense of further litigation, VA spokesman Matt Burns said. The agency also agreed to pay $225,000 in attorneys' fees and costs.

VA-issued headstones, markers and plaques can be used in any cemetery, whether it is a national one such as Arlington or a private burial ground like that on Circle Sanctuary's property.

Hildebrand estimated at least 1,800 Wiccans serve in the U.S. armed forces. Yesterday's decision applies to both active members and veterans, as well as those who have already died, Hildebrand said.

The state of Nevada already placed the pentacle on a plaque for a fallen soldier's family after the federal government refused to do so, Hildebrand said.

"It's been a big group effort," Hildebrand said. "It was exhausting, and people have put a lot of energy into this."

Material from The Associated Press was used in this story.

Staff writer Chris Cassidy can be reached at 978-338-2526 or by e-mail at ccassidy@ecnnews.com.