CHARLESTON, WV (WOAY) – At a ceremony in Charleston today, Gov. Patrick Morrisey posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Medal to Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, the National Guard member killed in the line of duty in Washington, D.C. last November.
Beckstrom was a graduate of Webster Springs High School. She served with the 863rd Military Police Company based out of Glen Jean.
At the ceremony, the governor awarded the medal to her parents, Evalea and Gary Beckstrom, saying that she represented the best of West Virginia.
“Sarah answered a call that not everyone hears and not everyone is willing to follow. Sarah chose to serve her state. She served her country, and she served her fellow members of the West Virginia Army National Guard,” Morrisey said. “In doing so, she joined the proud tradition of West Virginians who step forward when duty calls.”
The Distinguished Service Medal was created by the state Legislature in 1939.
