**Chief Master Sergeant Teddy Max Mabry, U.S. Air Force, Retired. Mabry was born on December 2, 1936, in Lake City, Arkansas. After graduating from high school, he enlisted in the U.S. Air Force on June 6, 1955. He completed extensive specialized training, including a 28-week Department of Defense Explosive Ordnance Disposal course, and obtained a Top Secret security clearance. By 1961, Mabry was stationed at Kindley Air Force Base in the Bermuda Islands, where he established an EOD and Disaster Preparedness Program. During the Cuban Missile Crisis, he worked with the Secret Service on the B-40 project, which involved assembling and operating equipment to monitor atmospheric tritium gas levels indicative of nearby nuclear weapons, and sending weekly samples to the Pentagon.

Throughout his career, Mabry served at multiple overseas locations, including Japan, the Philippines, Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam, as well as various assignments within the United States. He and his unit received recognition for their work, such as a Letter of Commendation in 1974 from Defense Attaché Major General Richard Trefry for operations in Laos involving ordnance clearance and training of Lao armed forces personnel. Mabry earned several awards during his service, including the Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal with 2nd Oak Leaf Cluster, Air Force Commendation Medal with 1st Oak Leaf Cluster, and the Airman’s Medal for Heroism in 1970 for rescuing a child from a flooded drainage system. Mabry retired from the Air Force on June 30, 1976, after more than 21 years of service, then worked in the civilian sector in Paragould until retiring in 1994. When interviewed about his EOD duties, Mabry stated, "The job didn’t make you nervous. It makes you NOT nervous or you wouldn’t be here.”