By MELANIE POOLE / Special to the Reporter

The Veteran of the Week is sponsored by the National Veterans Shrine and Register of Honor at the American Village — honoring America’s veterans and telling the stories of their service and sacrifice for the cause of liberty.

“The American Village is pleased to join the Shelby County Reporter in recognizing Master Sergeant Adam Nicholas Dement as Veteran of the Week,” American Village founder and CEO Tom Walker said. “He is representative of the hundreds of thousands of Alabamians who have risked it all for the sake of our country and its freedom. To all veterans we owe a debt we can never fully repay.”

Visit the website, Veteransregisterofhonor.com, today and add your loved ones to the Register of Honor. Help us honor, recognize, respect and remember our country’s veterans.

Here are highlights about this week’s Veteran of the Week: Adam Dement was born in Little Rock, AR in 1981. His hometown is Tuscaloosa, where he attended Central High School. He joined the U. S. Army in 1999 and served until 2011 as a radio operator. In 2011 he became a U. S. Army Recruiter, and is currently a Telecommunications Chief in Jacksonville, FL. First Sergeant Dement’s awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Service Commendation, Army Commendation, Joint Service Achievement, Good Conduct Medal, Kosovo Campaign Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Medal, Overseas Service Ribbon, NATO Medal, and Bronze Order of Mercury. Sergeant Dement also received the prestigious Sgt. Audie Murphy Club Award. The Sgt. Audie Murphy Club award is given to enlisted noncommissioned officers. Those who are awarded the medallion are inducted into an elite club of leaders who want to serve their communities and carry on the legacy of Sgt. Audie Murphy. Members must… “…exemplify leadership characterized by personal concern for the needs, training, development, and welfare of Soldiers and concern for families of Soldiers.”