Six years ago, Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Donna Johnson was killed in Afghanistan and her wife had to fight for survivor benefits. Now, the National Guard is naming a readiness center in her honor.
The North Carolina National Guard’s Raeford Readiness Center, in Johnson’s hometown of Raeford, N.C., will be renamed the Staff Sgt. Donna Johnson Readiness Center, reports the Fayetteville Observer.
Johnson, a member of the 514th Military Police Company, died in Afghanistan, one of the first same-sex spouses to die after the repeal of the military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy. In that time before nationwide marriage equality, her wife, Army National Guard Staff Sgt. Tracy Johnson, had to fight for the survivor benefits accorded to a different-sex spouse. Both Donna’s family and Tracy’s status as a member of the military herself helped her, NPR reported. The military covered her expenses to fly to Dover Air Force Base where Donna’s body was returned to the U.S., but only as a “friend of the family,” not a spouse. And luckily, Donna’s family treated her as Donna’s spouse, or Tracy would not even have had the right to keep Donna’s wedding ring. Her in-laws could only do so much, however—the Veteran’s Administration would not give her the benefits paid to different-sex spouses of service members who die on active duty, the Military Times explained. It wasn’t until 2014 that the VA allowed Tracy to access equal survivor benefits.
The Fayetteville Observer notes that the facility named in Donna’s honor is home to the 105th Engineer Battalion, “But it’s also more than a gathering place for soldiers. It’s a community asset, hosting local events and serving as a shelter to those in need during natural disasters.” The American Military Partner Association (AMPA) adds on its Facebook page, “Readiness centers constitute the most tangible and visible state-side symbol of the citizen soldier. SSG Johnson’s spirit will now forever remain with her community and nation.”
Having a building named after her will never bring her back to her family and loved ones, but perhaps it will at least offer them the comfort of knowing that our country will remember her sacrifice.