Heather L. McKay Mallory (b. 1986), of Hendersonville, North Carolina, served as a Military Police with the United States Marine Corps from 2005-2010. Heather Lynn McKay Mallory was born September 3, 1986 in Hendersonville, North Carolina, and grew up in nearby Flat Rock, North Carolina. She attended Faith Christian School for most of her education, before transferring to East Henderson High School in the tenth grade. Mallory enlisted in the U.S Marine Corps as a Military Police Corrections Officer, and was sent to the Military Entrance Processing Station, or MEPS, in Parris Island, South Carolina. There she learned weapon systems, became a squad leader, scored as a sharpshooter her first time firing a weapon, and was promoted to honor graduate. Having changed her Military Occupational Specialty, or MOS, to Military Police, Mallory then went to Marine Combat Training at Camp Geiger, in Jacksonville, North Carolina, and then Military Police Investigator School at Fort Leonard Wood in Missouri. Towards the end of MP school, Mallory was selected to join HMX-1, or Marine Helicopter Squadron One, and she served from 2006 to 2009 as security for the helicopters of the President of the United States. During her time at HMX-1, Mallory had to opportunity to travel throughout the world, including South Korea, Israel, Egypt, and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. When she wasn't traveling, Mallory worked in a secretarial capacity. She was eventually meritoriously promoted to captain and received a navy achievement medal. In July 2009, Mallory left HMX-1 to deploy to Okinawa, Japan, where she helped provide security for supply convoys, in addition to participating in a military training exercise at Mokpo Port in South Korea. While deployed, Mallory made the decision to leave the service. She went on to work as a contractor for the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Quantico, Virginia, and then the Henderson County, North Carolina, Division of Social Services. In August 2013, Mallory joined Buncombe County DSS as an Accredited Veterans Service Officer, working with survivors of military sexual trauma, and assisting with veterans filing for disability benefits.
