Brigadier General (Ret) Jeffrey L. Newton: Age 64

Brigadier General (Ret) Jeffrey L. Newton served 41 years with the U.S. Air Force and the AL Air National Guard. His Air Force Specialty Code included: A. 1. Operations Support Officer, 117th Resource Management Squadron, August 1989-September 1993, 2. Management and Systems Officer, 117th Readiness Squadron, September 1993-January 2000, 3. Chief of Supply, 117th Logistics Readiness Squadron, January 2000-September 2000, 4. Aircraft Maintenance Officer, 117th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, September 2000- April 2004, 5. Commander, 117th Aircraft Generation Squadron, April 2004-August 2006, 6. Commander, 117th Maintenance Squadron, August 2006-December 2010, 7. Commander. 117th Maintenance Group, January 2011-March 2012, 8. Vice Wing Commander, 117th Air Refueling Wing, March 2012-May 2013, Management and Systems Officer, 117th Logistics Readiness all in Birmingham, AL. B. 1. Director of Staff JFHQ-Air Component, May 2013-August 2017, 2. Assistant Adjutant General, JFHQ-Air Component, December 2017-January 2018, 3. Director, Joint Staff (AL), Joint Headquarters (JFHQ), January 2018-February 2028, all in Montgomery, AL.

Brig Gen Newton’s major military decorations include the Air Force Distinguished Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Air Force Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters, Air Force Commendation Medal with oak leaf clusters, Army Commendation Medal, Air Force Achievement Medal with oak leaf cluster and the Alabama Distinguished Service Medal.

Brig Gen Newton ‘s distinguished military career included numerous overseas deployments with the 117th Air Refueling Wing located in Birmingham, AL, supporting Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom and Operation Noble Eagle. His extended deployment locations included Prince Sultan Air Base, Saudia Arabia, Pisa, Italy, RAF Mildenhall, England, Incirlik Air Base, Turkey, Istres, France, and Ramstein Air Base, Germany. In November 2021, he was inducted into the U.S. Air Force’s Enlisted Heritage Hall of Fame Wall of Achievers at Maxwell AFB, Gunter Annex.

Brig Gen Newton retired from military service February 28, 2021, and he began working as the Assistant Commissioner of the AL Department of Veterans Affairs on March 1, 2021. He became Interim Commissioner of the AL Department of Veterans Affairs October 22, 2024 where he leads in assisting the nearly 400,000 AL veterans, families and survivors to make the transition from the military to civilian life and to receive benefits from the state and the federal government to which they may be entitled to under current laws.

Brig Gen Newton was born February 16, 1961 to his parents, Nevin and Eileen Newton in Corning, N.Y. His father served in the U.S. Air Force in the Korean War. He was reared for seven years in Corning, and he graduated from E.B. Erwin High School in Birmingham, AL, in 1979. He was mentored by his high school algebra teacher who had served in the Air Force, and he volunteered for service in the AL Air National Guard in February 1980. He completed Air Force Basic Training at Lackland Air Force Base, TX, and received three months of technical training for supply operations at Lowry A.F.B, CO. When he returned to Birmingham, AL, for service in the AL Air National Guard, he worked as a computer key punch operator. He began active guard/reserve duty in AL Air National Guard in June, 1981.

He used the G.I. Bill and received an Associate Degree in Contracts Management from the Community College of the Air Force in 1989, a B.S. Degree in Business Administration from Samford University in 1993 and a Master of Business Administration Degree from Auburn University in 2015.

Brig Gen Newton and his wife, Lisa, have been married 39 years, and they are members of the St. Mark Evangelist Catholic Church in Birmingham. He is a life member of the American Legion, the VFW, Disabled American Veterans, Military Officers Association of America and AMVETS. His hobbies include playing Taps as a “live bugler” at internments and at select national veterans events. He enjoys playing golf and exercising.

Brig Gen Newton’s conclusion about what serving in the U.S. military means to him are: “It was a great opportunity to serve and to give back. My father and a lot of my high school friends served. It changed my life and gave me the discipline that I needed to be successful in my career.” He would like people to remember him as someone who takes pride in taking care of others. He thinks that he was placed on this earth to do that and to be a servant leader.