Curtis A Smith VFW Post 1033 Auxiliary revealed the new Wall of Valor at the Covington Post Office on Tuesday, February 7th by honoring Women in the Military. We appreciate the opportunity to recognize our new Commander, Shawn D. Wright. Wright is the first female commander of VFW Post 1033 and District 6 and we are very proud of her.
Today the Wall of Valor salutes the following veterans:
Shawn Dineen Wright – Wright was a Hospital Corpsman United States Navy and was deployed to the Persian Gulf on the USNS Comfort during Desert Storm/Desert Shield. She was a senior Corpsman in the Critical Care Unit from April 1991 to January 1992. Prior to her deployment, Wright was stationed at Bethesda Navy Medical Center in Rockville, Maryland. Wright is employed by ConnectionsPlus Healthcare & Hospice. She is very involved in the community and is a member of Board of Directors for the Alleghany County Community Service Board. Wright is a 1987 graduate of Covington High School.
Crystal F Worley – Retired Air Force Senior Master Sargeant 1984-2008. Graduated from Alleghany High School in 1979.
SPC Camden G. Smith – U.S. Army (Specialist Corporal) enlisted in the U.S. Armed Forces on November 3, 2020, after graduating from Bath County High School. She received her basic training at Ft. Benning, GA., and is currently stationed at Fort Hood in Killeen, Texas. Smith is a gunner and her secondary duties are as Tank Commander. Camden was awarded the Army Commendation Medal, an award given by local commanders for consistent acts of heroism or meritious service. SPC Smith is the daughter of Larry & Vicki Smith, sister to Kelby Smith of Hot Springs, and granddaughter to Ralph and Patsy Snead of Covington.
Lt. Colonel Mary Sue Leffel – Leffel joined U.S. Air Force Nursing Corp in 1963 as 2nd Lieutenant. Leffel’s assignments took her to many places: Wilford Hall Hospital at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, Barksdale AFB, Louisiana, Air Force Hospital in Turkey, Tyndall AFB in Florida, Scott AFB in Illinois as a flight nurse and Air Force Nurse Anesthesia School in Lackland AFB. SPC Leffel graduated from Covington High School in 1958.
The Women in the Military wall gave us a great opportunity to recognize the first female Sargeant of the Guard for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier – Chelsea Porterfield retired from the US Army where she served as a platoon sergeant in the 3rd US Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard). Porterfield was part of a history-making change at the Tomb. After 84 years of being guarded, on October 1, 2021, the Tomb at Arlington National Cemetery had an all-woman shift change!! We are proud to include this on our wall.
We are grateful to the post office for allowing us the opportunity to pay tribute to local past and present veterans who served our country. We thank these veterans for their service and thank their families for sharing their loved ones with us. Please take the time to go by and see these brave women who served and those who are still serving the United States of America. God Bless America.
This page is available to subscribers. Click here to sign in or get access.