Born in November 1965 in Jacksonville, Florida, Suzanne Dubberly Speight enlisted in the Navy on Feb. 3, 1986, three years after graduating from Sandalwood High School. Following bootcamp at Recruit Training Command in Orlando, Florida, her first duty station was aboard the USS Prairie (AD-15).
Speight’s entered the Naval Reserve on Feb. 1, 1991, with the Naval Broadcasting and Television Center in Bermuda. On Veterans Day, Nov. 11, 1992, she met her husband, Daniel, who proposed exactly two years later. They were married 27 years, four years longer than the time she served in active and reserve service.
During Operation Iraqi Freedom, Speight deployed with the First Marine Expeditionary Force, Engineering Group, to Camp Fallujah, Iraq, from October 2004 to March 2005. There, she made sure to not just do her job telling the Navy’s story as a war correspondent, but to also visit with injured Seabees (The United States Naval Construction Battalions, who provided tactical construction support in Iraq), Marines and soldiers at Bravo Surgical in order to hear their stories.
Speight was like a grandmother to the children she encountered in Fallujah and continued making a difference in lives back home in many roles after her service, including as a Big Sister and volunteer with local churches and homeless shelters. In addition to helping others over the years, she also pursued a resolution to the tragic murder of her mother, when Speight was 15, even going on a TV show featuring cold cases in 2015.
After retiring from the Naval Reserve with the rank of Mass Communications Specialist Chief Petty Officer in 2009, Speight worked for the Navy Region Southeast (NRSE) as a community relations specialist. She also joined the Broward Navy Days board because she loved working on Fleet Week.
Over more than a decade in her position as part of the NRSE, Speight coordinated public affairs for Fleet Week Port Everglades. Her work showcasing the Navy and NRSE voices earned her the Commander, NRSE Junior Civilian of the Second Quarter 2015 award.
Speight retired from federal service at the NRSE in January 2022. She died in May 2022 after a 15-year battle with lung cancer from burn pit exposure in Fallujah. She was 56.
We honor her service.
Nominate a Veteran
Do you want to light up the face of a special Veteran? Have you been wondering how to tell your Veteran they are special to you? VA’s “Honoring Veterans” social media spotlight is an opportunity to highlight your Veteran and his/her service.
It’s easy to nominate a Veteran. Visit our blog post about nominating to learn how to create the best submission
Writer: Michelle A. Shade
Editor: Ethan Oleson
Researcher: Jacoryn Whatley
Graphic Designer: Kiki Kelley
Topics in this story
More Stories
In honor of National Park Service's National Park Week, this week's Honoring Veterans spotlight honors the service of Army Veteran Michael Trevino, who today works as a facility manager at Reconstruction Era National Historical Park.
This week’s Honoring Veterans Spotlight honors the service of Navy Veteran Ken Mattingly, who served as a pilot during the 1950s and later became an astronaut during the Apollo missions.
This week’s Honoring Veterans Spotlight honors the service of Air Force Veteran Gavino Cavazos, who served from 1949 to 1973 during both the Korean and Vietnam Wars.
How wonderful to honor such an amazing person! She was beautiful both inside and out. Thank you for sharing her story!