Honoring Our Heroes

Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jeffery Mathews: Age 66

Chief Warrant Officer 3 (CW3) Jeffery Mathews served 29 years in the U.S Army. His Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) was Supply (76C) involving requests, receipts, storage, etc. of

supplies and (920A) as a Chief Warrant Officer. CW3 Mathews’ work also included working as a property account technician with inventory control, purchasing procedures and stock control. He received the following decorations, medals, citations and campaign ribbons: Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Global War on

Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Bronze Star Medal, Army Commendation Medal (two awards), Army Achievement Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, Army Reserve Components Achievement Medal (three awards), National Defense Service Medal, Armed Forces Reserve Medal, Armed Forces Reserve Medal with “M” Device, Noncommissioned Officer’s Professional Development Ribbon with Numeral 3, Army Service Ribbon and Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar.

CW3 Mathews comes from a family with a history of military service in the U.S. Army. His father served in WWII and later two brothers also served in the military. CW3 Mathews was born June 3,1958 to his parents, Joe and Mary Mathews in Montgomery, AL. He graduated from Robert E. Lee High School in Montgomery, AL, in May 1977. He worked with the grounds and support staff at Alabama State University until he volunteered for military service in the U.S. Army and began serving November 1, 1977.

CW3 Mathews completed eight weeks of Basic Training at Ft. Dix, N.J., and was assigned to work in supply, and he completed eight weeks of training in supply at Ft. Lee, VA, January 1st through March 1, 1978. He served at Ft. Benning, GA, for five years from March 1978 through April 1982. CW3 Mathews was then deployed to Mannheim, Germany from May 1982 through May 1983. He separated from active duty in May 1983. CW3 Mathews worked for the drug company, Revco, at its distribution center at Hope Hull, AL, from June 1983 until December 1984. He resumed his military service in January 1985 and worked full time with the AL Army National Guard for the United States Property and Fiscal Office as a technician with supply for 21 years. While working full time, he started a Bible study in 1995 before work began and which is still active today on Thursdays at noon hosted by the full time chaplain. He attended the U.S. Army Warrant Officer School at Ft. Rucker, AL, in 1997. He used the GI Bill and received a B.S. Degree from Troy University in Resource Management in 2000. CW3 Mathews served in Baghdad, Iraq, with the 231 MP Battalion for one year during March 2004 until March 2005. While in Iraq, he was chosen as Senior Minister/Pastor of the gospel service. There is a five minute video of his preaching there on YouTube at “Preaching in Baghdad”. Also while CW3 Mathews was in Iraq, he served as the Minister of music for his developed praise team for the battalion’s chapel service. He retired from all military service in 2006.

CW3 Mathews reflects on his military service saying, “It was an honor and a privilege to serve with so many great men and women and to fulfil my purpose and calling while serving my country.” After his military retirement, CW3 Mathews worked at the Central AL Veterans Health Care System in Montgomery as a Veterans Service Representative for one year during 2009-2010. He worked at the Kilby Correctional Facility of the AL Department of Corrections from 2012-2018 as a supply clerk. While working at the prison, he discovered what he calls the Common Denominator of Troubled Men and How Great Men Get Locked Up and published these in one book in 2022.

He has written and published three inspirational books, namely, (1) Faith That Dominated Baghdad, (2) Marriage Cardiology 101, and (3) Perfecting Man from Lockup. He is the founder of The Book of Mathews Ministries. He served as a pianist and associate minister for Starr Baptist Church in Montgomery from 1998-2005.

Mathews and his wife Mildred have been married 40 years, and they are members of the Faith Chapel at Maxwell Air Force Base in

Montgomery.

THE VIEWS OF SUBMITTED EDITORIALS MAY NOT BE THE EXPRESS VIEWS OF THE ALABAMA GAZETTE.