CRESTVIEW — The name of Army Sgt. 1st Class William “Kelly” Lacey, an Okaloosa County native killed in action in Afghanistan in 2014, soon will be added to the Okaloosa County Veterans Memorial Wall.
The memorial’s newly reconstituted board of directors met Aug. 17 to discuss revising its bylaws to clarify who is eligible for inclusion on the wall near Okaloosa County's courthouse in downtown Crestview. The meeting was prompted by an inquiry Lacey’s family, including his dad John, and widow, Ashley, made in July.
Lacey’s stepmother, Karla Lacey of Laurel Hill, originally was told Kelly’s name could not be included on the memorial because he didn’t meet three criteria: that he was born in Okaloosa County, that he was killed in action, and that he had trained at a military installation in Okaloosa County. The third requirement eliminated Kelly, who never trained at local bases.
When Crestview Mayor David Cadle, the foundation's vice president, and retired Brig. Gen. Mark Stogsdill, the secretary/treasurer, learned of the rejection, plans were set in motion to fix the problem.
The organization recruited four additional board members: former Fort Walton Beach Mayor Glenda Glover, former Eglin Community Relations Chief Shirley Pigott, Crestview businessman Andy Powell, and Crestview attorney Bill Parker. Crestview resident Bob Lynn will continue as the organization’s president.
Under the bylaws' new wording, a person may be eligible to have their name on the wall if he or she was born in Okaloosa County or attended a public or private (including homeschool) school in Okaloosa County; and was killed while on active duty in the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines or Coast Guard.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Okaloosa Courthouse memorial in Crestview will include Laurel Hill soldier's name