Ken Nava elected to board

Retired Maj. Gen. Kenneth A. Nava has been elected to the David Westphall Veterans Foundation Board of Directors. 

Nava served as New Mexico adjutant general from 2017 until his retirement on Dec. 31, 2021. He succeeds Richard “Dick” Dickerson on the Westphall Board.

Ken Nava

Nava was commissioned as an Air Defense Artillery officer upon graduation from the New Mexico National Guard Academy in Roswell in August 1992. He served in various Guard positions throughout the state.

He and his wife, Dawn, have been married for 34 years. The couple has three children and seven grandchildren.

His cousin, Marine Cpl. Francis X. Nava was the first person from Santa Fe killed during the Vietnam War, on Sept. 10, 1966.

“My uncle, Staff Sgt. Frank Arrey Jr., was killed 11 days later on Sep 21, 1966,” Nava said.

Nava served as a battalion commander in Iraq. He recalled that “Vietnam veterans were the first to greet my soldiers and me when we returned from their one-year combat tour in 2010.

“It is an understatement to say that our Vietnam veterans and Gold Star families have a special place in my heart,” he said. “I am honored to have been selected to serve on this Board, and I look forward to whatever I can contribute.”