H-F Grad, Colonel Sylvia Moran Retires: Remarkable Resident

Colonel Sylvia Moran, the boundary smashing, nationally influential  graduate is officially retiring today after over 35 years of service.

Moran's retirement ceremony was held on March 25. Army Chief of Staff member and General George W. Casey spoke in honor of the esteemed Colonel.

"Sylvia and I go back almost a decade," General Casey said. "We served together very closely in Iraq, and it's a great honor and privilege for me to be the one who retires her from the Army."

Casey continued to speak at length about Moran's innumerable achievements. Up until today, she has been the last active member of the first graduating class of women admitted into West Point Military Academy. She knows and has taught French and Arabic, she lead the Army judo team to their first national title in 1993, she's been a paratrooper, she survived the Pentagon attack on 9/11 and she lead the Army's planning for the Iraq War.

If that weren't enough, her awards and decorations include:

• Instructor of the year for teaching at the U.S. Army Intelligence Center and School in 1986
• The Distinguished Service Medal 
• The Legion of Merit, the Bronze Star 
• The U.S. Department of State Superior Honor Award
• The U.S. Army parachutist and air assault badges
• The French Armed Forces parachutist and Commando badges.

Moran said she attributes much of her success to and the, both of which allowed her to engage in activities that were customarily restricted from women in the '70s. 

"We were required to do things that others schools didn't do. We did four years of physical ed.," Moran said of H-F High. "There were girls who went into West Point who had never done sports ever."

And while it may not have been as instrumental to Moran's success, she's still craves . According to Moran, her family used to drive to the Homewood location, even after her mom moved to Tinley Park.

While she remains modest in her self-assessment, Colonel Moran is a trailblazer who has served as inspiration for countless women today.

General Casey would concur.

"So Sylvia, there is another generation of women, not just in the Army, but in the military, who are going to see other barriers fall here and be able to be everything that they want to be, and that's about as American as you can get," Casey said. "That will be your legacy."

While what lies on the horizon is uncertain, Moran is excited to finally have the time to accomplish in a long-awaited dream.

"One thing one of my friends, who's also a retired colonel, and I are gonna do is hike the Appalachian Trail," Moran said. "We've both wanted to do that since we were teenagers."

For her impact on the community, the nation and the world, H-F Patch is privileged to announce, on her retirement day, Colonel Sylvia Moran as this week's remarkable resident.