First Black Wilson HS Alumna Among 2024 West Point Grads

By Rosaland Tyler
Associate Editor
New Journal and Guide

Portsmouth native Stevie Gary recently crossed the commencement stage at West Point, shook hands with keynote speaker President Joe Biden; then, she headed to a six-month tour of duty at Fort Moore, in Georgia.

Gary, who received a full-ride West Point scholarship in 2019, made history when she became the first Black female from Wilson High to graduate from the United States Military Academy at West Point.

“It’s still unbelievable,” said Gary, one of 1,036 cadets who graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point on May 25. “All praise to God, without him, I wouldn’t have been able to do it. I am happy that I had a great support system. My mom, my family, my siblings.”

Her support system also included devoted teachers at Wilson High, where she was a member of the basketball and track teams.

Portsmouth teachers took “the time to put little tidbits of life information” along the path “so that was a really good experience for me,” said Gary, who will embark on a three-year tour at Texas’ Fort Bliss after she leaves Fort Moore, in Georgia.

She described her tenure at West Point as “definitely difficult. There were many long nights, many injuries, many mental battles that I had to overcome,” the newly minted second lieutenant said in recent news reports. “However, that came with great people that were around me. Not just my family at home, but I got to meet a new tribe of people at West Point,” said Gary, who was a member of West Point’s gospel choir.

Her mother, Michelle Hughes said, “I birthed greatness. I’m extremely proud. I really am. I was just telling her, 23 years ago, you were just a baby. She never gave me any problems!”