Veterans Day 2024 - Virtual Tribute to County Veterans
We proudly pay tribute to the Veterans living in our County who have served our country in the U.S. uniformed and armed services. We also solemnly remember and pay tribute to the County’s fallen service members who have died in service to our country on our Fallen Heroes site.
The records show these men and women as enlisting, being originally from, or having at one time lived in Montgomery County, Maryland. We consider the U.S. Department of Defense home of entry records as the official designation of military residency.
Please click on the tabs below:
Peacetime (Those time periods not designated by Congress as wartime are considered to be peacetime.)
Nelson Markley Bortz, Jr.
Nelson Bortz, Jr., served in the United States Marine Corps from June 1957 to June 1960. He went to Parris Island, South Carolina for boot camp followed by advanced infantry training at Camp Geiger, North Carolina. He joined the 2nd Marine Division in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina with the Fleet Marine Forces-Atlantic. From July 1958 to March 1959 he was deployed to Beirut with the Army from Germany in support of the Lebanese-Christian government. In Summer 1959, he was deployed to open the St. Lawrence Seaway. Bortz was discharged in June 1960 from 2nd Reconnaise Battalion in Stone Bay, North Carolina, as a Corporal E3 with a Good Conduct Medal. Bortz graduated from Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School and earned a BS in Agronomy from the University of Maryland. He worked as a Financial Programs Manager for Montgomery County Government and retired in 1992. Bortz currently lives in Olney, Maryland.
Barrington Lee Davis, Sr.
Barrington Lee Davis, Sr., enlisted with the U.S. Army after attending mechanic school at Montgomery College. He served from 1953 to 1955. After his service, he worked for different food industries for over 20 years and owned and operated his own charter bus company for 5 years. He also drove a school bus for the Montgomery County Public School system and retired after 20 years of service. Davis graduated from George Washington Carver High School and lived in Rockville, Maryland. He was married to his wife Mildred for 43 years. He passed away on April 2, 2023.
Domenic DeStefano
Domenic DeStefano served in the U.S. Army from 1983 to 1987 and the Army National Guard from 1987 to 1993. He attained the rank of Sergeant. He works for the Department of Veterans Affairs and resides in Gaithersburg, Maryland since 1998.
Lillian Elaine Fishburn
Lillian Fishburn made history by being the first African-American woman to attain the rank of rear admiral when she was promoted by President Bill Clinton in 1998. This followed her tenures as chief of the Command and Control Systems Support Division in Washington, D.C., and as commander of the Naval Computer and Telecommunications Area Master Station of the Eastern Pacific. She retired in 2001 with decorations including the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Legion of Merit, two Meritorious Service Medals, two Navy Commendation Medals and the Navy Achievement Medal. She currently resides in Rockville, Maryland. View full profile
Ella Mae Gray
Ella Mae Gray served in the U.S. Air Force as a Senior Airman from 1994 to 1998. As a health services administrator, she worked in various administrative positions within the base hospital including the orderly room, medical library and medical records. She also performed ceremonial duties with the base Honor Guard. Gray grew up in East Tennessee and graduated from Alcoa High School in 1994. She graduated from Troy University, Troy, Alabama, with a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice and Psychology in 2000. She also graduated from LaSalle University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, earning a Master of Arts in Clinical Counseling Psychology in 2005. Gray has been a licensed psychotherapist in Montgomery County since 2010. In 2016, she opened Guiding Principles Counseling Services, LLC, in Gaithersburg. Gray is currently a resident of Germantown, Maryland.
Robert Maydwell, Jr.
Robert Maydwell, Jr., served in the U.S. Navy from 1983 to 1987 as an E4 (Submarine Service). He served on board a nuclear powered fast attack submarine as a storekeeper, excelling in ship navigation. Maydwell came to Montgomery County to receive cancer treatment at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Bethesda, Maryland in 2012. He previously worked for the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and currently works for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Maydwell resides in Derwood, Maryland with his wife Megan and their daughter Ella.
John Mendez
John Mendez served as a Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps where he participated in Operations Provide Promise-Deny Flight (Bosnia-Herzegovina) and Operation Restore Hope (Somalia) during two deployments with 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit in the 1990s. During his service, he received two meritorious promotions in rank. Mendez is dedicated to ending veteran homelessness in Montgomery County through his work at Bethesda Cares, Inc., which has garnered national attention for its successful strategies and outcomes. He has also received recognition from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for his work to end veteran homelessness. In recognition of this work and military service, Mendez had the distinct honor of being then-Congressman Chris Van Hollen’s guest at President Barack Obama’s 2012 State of the Union Address to Congress. He is also a past recipient of the Dr. Wayne Fenton Memorial Award from the National Alliance on Mental Illness for Montgomery County. More recently, he served as the keynote speaker at the 2019 Veterans Day memorial service in Bethesda, Maryland. He is currently the Executive Director of Bethesda Cares and has worked to provide coordinated care to vulnerable homeless populations for the past 20 years. Mendez currently lives in Bethesda, Maryland with his wife and child.
Daniel Pollak
Daniel Pollak served in the U.S. Navy as a Lieutenant from 1981 to 1985. He spent 91 days straight underwater as a submarine officer. He currently lives in Silver Spring, Maryland with his wife.
Jonathan Powell
Jonathan Powell served in the U.S. Navy from 1994 to 2001. He was an Officer on USS Dallas and was also deployed on USS Philadelphia and USS Grayling. He concluded his active duty service as a Regional Director for Admissions at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. Powell’s first post-Navy job was working for IBM in Gaithersburg in 2001. He currently lives in Montgomery County with his wife Alexandra.
Lawrence Wasserman
Lawrence Wasserman served in the U.S. Air Force from 1956 to 1960. After completing basic training at Lackland Air Force Base, San Antonio, Texas, he was sent to Fort Belvoir, Virginia to attend training as a topographical surveyor. He was then reassigned to Langley Air Force Base, Hampton, Virginia to work on a project that involved mathematical analysis for targeting information. Wasserman’s last assignment was at Ladd Army Airfield, Fairbanks, Alaska performing duties as a surveyor. After his discharge from the military, he obtained bachelors, masters, and PhD degrees. Wasserman currently resides in Potomac, Maryland.
If you would like to share your story or the story of a friend or family member, please either fill out our Google form or fill out the PDF form. Questions can be directed to MCCVA@montgomerycountymd.gov.
For more information please call 240-777-1252 (V) or email MCCVA@montgomerycountymd.gov
