Zachary Scott Jones

Staff Sergeant Zachary Scott Jones exemplifies resilience, perseverance, and lifelong service. Born in Spring Hill, Louisiana and raised in Sparkman, Arkansas, Zach graduated from Harmony Grove High School in 2004 and enlisted in the U.S. Army shortly thereafter. He began his military journey as a wheeled vehicle mechanic and completed Airborne School in February 2005.

Over the course of a distinguished 15.5-year military career, Zach served at numerous duty stations including Fort Bragg (NC), Fort Eustis (VA), Seoul (South Korea), Fort Campbell (KY), Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson (AK), Fort Stewart (GA), and Fort Sam Houston (TX). He deployed to Iraq in 2006 for 15 months and later to Kuwait in 2016.

In July 2017, while stationed in Alaska, Zach was hospitalized with a high-grade fever that baffled doctors. Shortly after being moved from the ICU, he experienced sudden paralysis from the chest down. He was diagnosed with Transverse Myelitis, a rare autoimmune disease that causes inflammation of the spinal cord. The illness left him a T4 paraplegic, changing the course of his life overnight.

Despite the physical challenges, Zach continued to embody the Army values of courage and determination. He medically retired from the Army in February 2020, closing out a career marked by honor and service. He now lives with his wife of 15 years, Christine Jones, and their daughter Kennedy.

Zach remains an avid outdoorsman and adaptive athlete, pursuing hobbies such as hunting, fishing, adaptive snow skiing, hand cycling, shotgun sports, and archery. In 2019, he earned a silver medal in the first-ever Para Bunker Trap competition at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado and hopes to see the sport recognized at the Paralympic level in the future.