Barbara Summey Marshall (b. 1955), of Hendersonville, North Carolina, served as a chaplain in the United States Navy and Navy Reserve from 1986-2001. Barbara Summey Marshall was born 20 September 1955 in Henderson, North Carolina. She attended an all African-American school until about the fourth grade, when the schools became integrated, and graduated from high school in 1973. Marshall then began attending the University of North Carolina at Charlotte on a General Electric four-year scholarship. She graduated in 1977 with degrees in psychology and sociology, and went immediately to Duke University Divinity School for seminary. She graduated in 1979. In 1984, Marshall moved to Gastonia, North Carolina, and began working for BellSouth, selling yellow-page advertisements. After speaking with a United States Navy recruiter about the requirements to become a chaplain, Marshall enlisted in the reserves in October 1986 as a yeoman. She went to Providence, Rhode Island for Officer Candidate School, and during her next few years in the reserves, would participate in training at Naval Education and Training Center Orlando, Florida, and Dam Neck Naval Base, Virginia. During this time, Marshall was earning credits that would allow her to enter the Chaplain Candidate Officer Program and completed two months of Naval Chaplaincy School. In 1991, Marshall transitioned to active duty in the U.S. Navy, and was assigned to United States Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina as the motor chief chaplain for the 8th Motor Transport Battalion. Her duties included counseling sailors, both in her office and in the hospital, and providing ministry during funerals. In 1996, Marshall was recommended for the position of command chaplain at the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren Division, in Virginia. In this role, Marshall held Sunday ministry responsibilities, taught Bible study, and was also responsible for coordinating worship opportunities for people of various faiths. In February 2001, Marshall left the U.S. Navy with the rank of lieutenant, and has since spent time working with homeless women veterans in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
