SCHS Alumni to Hold Book Signing Tomorrow

Tomorrow, Feb 24, from noon until 2 p.m., SCHS Alumni, author and First Lieutenant A.J. Howard, Jr. will be holding a book signing for “Soldiering to Success.”

The event, which will take place at the Currahee Military Museum, 160 Alexander Street in Toccoa, is open to the public and there is no charge to attend. 

A native of Toccoa, Howard graduated from Stephens County High School in 2017, and went on to graduate from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 2022, where he was commissioned as a Military Intelligence officer. He has been branch-detailed to the Armor Branch, where he will serve for 3 years before joining the Intelligence Corps.

After graduation from West Point, his first duty assignment was to the United States Military Academy Prep School (“USMAPS”), where he served as an assistant football coach, character development instructor, strength & conditioning coach, and operations officer. Howard, himself, graduated from the US Military Academy Prep School in 2018 before entering West Point, and he attributes much of his success at West Point to the one year of intense academic and military preparation at the Prep School – preparation that built on his high school experience.

While at SCHS, Howard was an active member of the JROTC program. He was named the Outstanding Cadet as a Junior and then appointed a Lt. Colonel and Battalion Commander in his Senior year.

Howard says that athletics was undoubtedly a part of the driving force that got him to WestPoint, but he says it was his perseverance that was the determining factor that ensured he graduated. He lettered three years as a halfback on The Army Football Team, with 5 “stars” for victories over Navy and Air Force. He also excelled in military leadership, being appointed a Cadet Captain and Regimental Staff Officer during his Senior year.

Although he has not ruled out a military career after he completes his 5-year obligation from West Point, Howard says he is also considering a career with the F.B.I.

 In Sept. 2023, Howard completed the six-month Armor Basic Officer Leader Course at Ft. Moore and is currently assigned as an assistant operations officer (plans) in an Armor, or tank, unit at Fort Cavazos in Texas, and Howard published his first memoir, “Soldiering to Success,” at the end of 2023. 

For more information about the book signing, contact the  Currahee Military Museum at (706) 282-5055.