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From a Salem, Ohio fishwrap ...

Life-long Salem resident answers calls to serve

By KEVIN HOWELL, Salem News staff writer

Some people choose to serve their country. Some people choose to serve the Lord.

Life-long Salem resident Wayne Benner has chosen to do both.

Benner, a Staff Sgt. in the National Guard and veteran of the Marines, recently returned home from an 18-month deployment in Kosovo.

After finishing his service in the Marines in early 2001, Benner joined the National Guard. Before being deployed in June of 2006, he earned a bachelor’s of science in religion from Liberty University.

Since his return home, Benner has begun working toward a master's degree in religious education at Liberty University, which he should receive by the beginning of 2009. Once he earns his master's degree, along with an ecclesiastical endorsement, he will be eligible to become an army chaplain.

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