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 Lieutenant Colonel Jeff A. Simmons 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: Jeff was born in Selma in 1976 and raised in a military family. From a young age he had a desire to serve his country. A graduate of the US Air Force and a career fighter pilot, Jeff served active duty, in the Air Guard, in combat unites and test units across three theatres of operation. He now lives in Prattville.

In Their Own Words: “It’s an unbelievable honor to serve in the world’s greatest military, defending freedom throughout the world.”