Freedom Remembered

Born: August 6, 1986 in Luverne, Alabama
Died: March, 8, 2010 in Al Kut, Iraq

Sgt. Lakeshia M. Bailey of Columbus, Georgia was a 2004 graduate of Spencer High School where she excelled in mathematics. “Sha” also enjoyed Cosmetology and Home Economics. After high school, she enrolled at Columbus State University where she studied for one year before deciding to join the Army in February of 2006. She arrived for duty at Fort Benning in June of 2006 and was currently serving as a transport operator. The decision to enlist was likely inspired by her military upbringing. Her father had served 24 years before retiring, so she knew about the military life. The daughter of Tony and Phyliss Bailey was committed to Army life and was selected in the summer of 2009 as the Soldier of the Month for her unit and a few months later received soldier of the quarter. She was just a fun person to be around and would be the life of any party. Blessed with a beautiful smile, that she was always wearing, Lakeshia didn’t allow much to get her down. She deployed to Iraq for the first time in 2007. During her 12 months overseas she garnered a lot of experience and confidence. In 2009, prior to deploying again to Iraq in October, she was married. Going into this tour, Bailey told her family she felt more prepared for war. Her Awards and Decorations include, the Army Commendation Medal, an Army Achievement Medal, an Army Good Conduct Medal, a National Defense Service Medal, two Iraq Campaign Medals, a Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, a Noncommissioned Officer Professional Development Ribbon, an Army Service Ribbon and an Overseas Service Ribbon. She died at age 23 north of Al Kut, Iraq, of injuries sustained during a vehicle roll-over.
Army
203rd Brigade Support Battalion
attached to the 1st Battalion
10th Field Artillery Regiment
3rd Brigade Combat Team
3rd Infantry Division
Fort Benning, Georgia

Burial is at Fort Mitchell National Cemetery in Fort Mitchell, Alabama – Sec 15 Site 593

The Sgt. Lakeshia Mesha Bailey by Freedom Remembered, unless otherwise expressly stated, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 3.0 United States License.