Becoming a Drill Sergeant and attaining the rank of Command Sergeant Major (CSM) were two goals that Kenneth Petty set for himself. The Ozark native who has served as a JROTC Instructor at Daleville High School since 2019 has attained both.

Retiring in 2018 after 28 years on active duty in the Army, Petty was retired for about a year before being encouraged to use his experiences and skill set as instructor in some capacity. “My pastor wife said I had a purpose and that purpose was education,” Petty recalled. “It just came out of the blue.

For Pamela Y. Smith, being a servant leader has always been a priority. The combat veteran and retired master sergeant with 23 years of military service under her belt continues to serve as a Department of the Army civilian in the Logistics Department at Fort Rucker’s Lyster Army Health Clinic.

A lifetime member and Past Junior Vice and Past Senior Vice Commander of the John Wiley Brock Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 6683 in Enterprise, Smith was named Veteran of the Year in 2018 during the Veterans Tribute Ceremony at the Enterprise Civic Center.

Turnace Hartwell Brown, Odell Clark and Sydney Richard Mauldin are among 16 Gold Star soldiers featured in “Gold Star Soldiers of the Korean War from Dale County, Alabama,” a publication researched and compiled by Dale County natives Berta Blackwell, Kay Kingsley and Donna Snell.

They suggest—half laughing—that their story be titled “A tale of two Chris’s.”

The subtitle, then, should be “service above self” because the combat veterans with nearly 50 years’ military service between them—and same first name— continue to serve as civilian business owners.

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The service and sacrifice of local veterans will be honored during the annual Veterans Tribute ceremony Thursday, Nov. 5, at the Enterprise Civic Center.

Col. (ret.) Teresa Townsend was commissioned into the U.S. Army in 1985 through Tuskegee Institute’s (University) Army Reserve Officer Training Corps program. Over her 30 year military career, she served in a myriad of command and staff positions in the both the regular Army and U.S. Army Reserve.

Dustin Weeks joined the Air Force Reserves out of Maxwell Air Force Base in 2008, and was part of the 357 Airlift Squadron after already establishing his career as an A&P mechanic working on helicopters. Weeks wanted to serve his country and to travel.

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A program in honor of our military and veterans, sponsored bt the Zion Chapel Elementary SGA and Senior High Beta Club, will be held at 9 a.m., Friday, Nov. 8, at Zion Chapel Green Memorial Stadium. 

“I give God all the glory of putting me in and bringing me through the military,” said U.S. Army Staff Sgt. (Ret.) Donna Brion. “If it wasn’t for him, I would not have made it through. He carried me through so much. He just put that on my heart to go in the National Guard. It was all guidance from the Lord.”

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The Enterprise and Daleville area is home to many, many United States military veterans from all branches of service.

The following is a list of some of those veterans who are being paid tribute this week as Veterans Day 2019 is celebrated. 

J L Weeks was about 11 years old when his older brother joined the Navy, needing his father’s permission, to serve in World War II. In 1953, he was inspired to join the Navy during the Korean War at 19 and have his own adventure in the military.

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In the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ drive to help improve lives of veterans through health care discovery and innovation, a team led by VA researchers recently identified three genetic mutations that govern cholesterol levels, which could lead to the development of new drugs to treat cardiovascular disease and diabetes. 

U.S. Army Capt. (Ret.) George Heneveld looks at the wall of his office—or his “man cave” as he calls it—filled with corvettes and memories from his days as a pilot for the 25th Aviation Battalion, where he piloted C-Model Hueys and AH-1 Cobras.

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The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is commemorating National Family Caregivers Month this November by honoring the service of 5.5 million family members and friends who have dedicated their lives to providing much-needed care for chronically ill, injured or disabled veterans.

Hope and Jerry Lucas’ paths were seemingly destined to cross. From matching moles on their wrists, to March birthdays they had much in common from the start. If life was a puzzle they were the pieces. What brought them together, after knowing their story, seems like more than coincidence.

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Just mention the word veteran and most people think of a soldier who has served in our country’s armed forces.

Veterans will be honored on Nov. 11 with a holiday recognizing their contribution to our freedoms. We salute their sacrifices and owe them a debt of gratitude for their service.

In these grim days a seaman’s work is no fishing trip, no Sunday picnic, no moonlight excursion with soft music. It’s not a job for chicken-hearted fellows. It’s for men with guts and good red blood. It’s hard work with danger in it,” states a narrator in a 1943 United States War Shipping Administration recruitment film. Now, 88-year-old multi-service veteran, Sherman Travis Key, will tell you that he agrees with that sentiment, even if he didn’t know those facts as a teen recruit in the Merchant Marines.

Corkey Richards did not lead the easiest live growing up in New Brockton.

He did not have a car, so he had to walk everywhere he went. He even had to walk to school just to participate in extracurricular activities like football.

When the names Max and Elaine Roberts are mentioned most think of the couple’s selfless service to fellow veterans.

The Enterprise couple has been honored nationally multiple times but say that what they do for others is simply “giving back.”

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Frederick Warren stands with his wife, nieces and nephews. Pictured, back row, from left, are Frederick Warren, A’mun Warren and A’iyeem Warre…

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The Enterprise and Daleville area is home to many, many United States military veterans from all branches of service.