By: RiverDogs Media
The Charleston RiverDogs and Boeing will host their first Hall of Honor induction ceremony of 2023 prior to Wednesday night's Boeing Military Appreciation Night at The Joe. The ceremony will recognize 1st Lieutenant Brooke Jackson Kahn of the United States Army and Colonel (retired) Judith Hughes of the United States Air Force as the eighth class of inductees.
The Hall of Honor is an integral piece of Boeing and the RiverDogs joint military appreciation platform, which aims to honor and celebrate military families in the Lowcountry through various recognition programs. The team inducted two classes, with two inductees per class, during the first two years of the program. For the first time, in 2022, three classes were inducted into the Hall of Honor. Three more classes, totaling six individuals, will be inducted throughout the 2023 campaign.
At each Boeing Military Appreciation Night a minimum of two inductees will be enshrined into the Hall of Honor. A community military committee chooses the inductees from a long list of nominees, including many who are nominated through the Hall of Honor's public nomination link.
All inductees will be recognized on the field on a Military Appreciation Night, and will have their story told on the RiverDogs' Hall of Honor web site.
The ceremony will take place on the field at The Joe at 6:30 pm on Wednesday, May 17th prior to that night's 7:05 pm first pitch against the Delmarva Shorebirds. Media members are invited to attend.
About the Inductees
Brooke Jackson Kahn is a Physician Assistant and a U.S. Army Combat Veteran. She started her career as an Active-Duty combat medic and now serves in the U.S. Army Reserves as a PA.
Brooke is the founder of “She's the Veteran”, a female-only veteran community located in Charleston, South Carolina. Their mission is improving mental health through programmatic activities, while building a supportive community. Brooke has led the way by shining light on topics important to women currently serving, or having previously served, in the military.
Brooke has been selected to the South Carolina Women Veterans Leadership Board for the VA. The board is a think tank and advocates for important changes to women's healthcare. She was chosen as a “Healthcare Hero 2022” for her work in the community and as a PA helping patients. Brooke was one of eight veterans chosen to be featured on the HISTORY Channel's “Salute to Service”, which aired on nationally-syndicated TV in November 2022. Her published writings can be found on “PA Moms Blog,” and the “Veteran Semi-Professional” website.
She currently practices as a Neurosurgical PA at Roper St. Francis Hospital.
Col Judi Hughes retired from the U.S. Air Force after 27.5 years of active-duty service effective December 1, 2014. Immediately prior to retiring, she served as the Commander, 628th Medical Group, 628th Air Base Wing, Joint Base Charleston where she was responsible for the overall operation of medical services and medical readiness for the 628th Air Base Wing and 437th Airlift Wings, providing healthcare for approximately 62,000 eligible beneficiaries, managing 315 group personnel and an annual operating budget of $12 million. The 628th Medical Group is also a partner in the Lowcountry Federal Healthcare Alliance, one of only 11 DoD/VA Joint Venture sites in the United States.
Col Hughes is a graduated squadron commander and deputy group commander and has held positions at Air Staff, the Air Force Inspection Agency and in both inpatient and outpatient clinical arenas. Col Hughes graduated in 2006 from Air War College, Air University, Maxwell AFB, AL and held a national certification in ambulatory care nursing for 10 years. She served as the Chief Nurse at the military trauma hospital in Afghanistan in 2010-2011.
Col Hughes was born and raised in Leominster, Massachusetts where her extensive family still resides. She entered the Air Force in July 1987 after completing her Baccalaureate Degree in Nursing at Saint Anselm College in Manchester, NH. She is the proud mom of two young adult children and currently lives in Charleston.
After retiring from the military, she was employed as the Manager of the Joint Base Charleston Consignment Shop, tripling their sales revenue and allowing $30,000 to be put back into the military community through college scholarships and charitable donations. She has since served in several volunteer Board nominated positions including the Charleston Research Institute at the Ralph H. Johnson VA Hospital and the Palmetto Military Support Group nonprofit, where she operated as President from 2020-2022.
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