Specialist First Class Henry J. Bevel, Jr.

Early Life

Henry J. Bevel, Jr. was born on March 9, 1934, in Madison, Florida, and later lived in Valdosta, Georgia, with his parents, Henry J. Bevel, Sr. and Clyde Thema (Tice) Bevel, and his sister, Novella. It was clear that the family prioritized schooling, hard work, and church life. Bevel’s family background provided a supportive foundation for his future endeavors, showcasing a lifelong commitment to faith and community.

Bevel grew up in the segregated South where he often faced racism while walking past White schools to his segregated school. Although his family’s home was only one block away from the White elementary school, he was forced to walk across town to attend the Black elementary school. He later graduated from Dasher High School, a historically African-American high school, in 1951. 

Bevel then briefly attended Morris Brown College in Atlanta in 1951. However, he was determined to leave Georgia to find better opportunities, so he enlisted in the military. Seventeen-year-old Bevel viewed the military as a way to escape the deeply entrenched racism he experienced in Valdosta, and as a pathway to new opportunities. When his mother learned about his enlistment, she wanted him discharged, but his father insisted he remain because, given the segregation and oppression in Valdosta, the military was “the best opportunity he had.”

Homefront

The local economy of Valdosta, Georgia, was supported by agricultural production, specifically cotton, corn, peanuts, and tobacco. This agricultural activity supported national efforts during the Korean War.

Though Valdosta, Georgia, was not directly involved in any wartime manufacturing, the nearby Moody Air Force Base played a critical role in training recruits for the war, as it addressed the rising need for trained pilots.

During this period, Valdosta was deeply segregated under Jim Crow laws. Black residents were subjected to systemic discrimination and racial violence. This was exemplified by the 1951 police killing of Willie James Watson, in which white police officers abused the rights of Watson, and the decision of an all-White jury encouraged brutality towards Black people. Bevel grew up in this hostile environment, where he experienced racism first-hand, having rocks thrown at him while walking to school and racial slurs written in his school books. 

Military Experience

Upon enlisting in 1952, Henry J. Bevel, Jr. entered the U.S. Army during the final year of the Korean War, and celebrated his eighteenth birthday in the military. He served in the Army Signal Corps as part of the Headquarters Battery, 2^nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Battalion, which provided communication support via radio relays during the Korean War. He was responsible for communications support in a combat zone, ensuring frontline units could coordinate and detect aerial threats. Bevel served with distinction and achieved the rank of specialist first class.

After his tour of duty in Korea, Bevel was assigned to Fort Hood, Texas, and Fort Polk, Louisiana, where he faced significant challenges due to segregation. He was honorably discharged on January 19, 1956, from Fort Hood, Texas, after which he took advantage of the G.I. Bill to further his education. The discipline and perspective he gained in the Army greatly benefited his later work as a minister and, more notably, a chaplain for fellow Veterans.

Veteran Experience

After his military service, Henry J. Bevel, Jr. pursued higher education and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from Kentucky State College (now Kentucky State University) in 1959. 

After surviving a serious heart attack, Bevel felt called to the ministry and attended Lexington Theological Seminary, where he obtained a Master of Divinity with an emphasis on Counseling in June 1971. In that same year, the now ordained Reverend Bevel, his wife Shelvy Ann, and their children moved to Iowa, where he was appointed Associate Pastor of the Des Moines Inner City Cooperative Parish.

Reverend Bevel dedicated his career to ministry and education, as associate pastor at the Inner City Cooperative Parish. He also was a professor of Afro-American Religion at Drake University, where he shared his knowledge of Black church history with college students. 

In 1976, he became a Staff Chaplain at the Des Moines Veterans Administration (VA) Medical Center, and later Chief Chaplain, a role he fulfilled until his retirement in 1994. This role blended together his two passions, faith ministry and service to Veterans. Given his own experiences during the Korean War, he was able to employ a deep empathy while providing counseling and spiritual care to the Veterans he supported. 

After his retirement from the VA, he was appointed Superintendent of the Council Bluff District for the Iowa Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church until 1998. During that time, he mentored pastors and and assisted churches in western Iowa.

Along with his professional roles, Reverend Bevel was an advocate for social justice, participating in a peaceful protests opposing the military draft and urging parents to enroll their Black children in traditionally Black colleges to ensure better educational experiences. Reverend Bevel and his wife, Shelvy Ann, to whom he was married for 60 years, remained active in their faith community until the day of his passing at age 84 on October 14, 2018.

Commemoration

Reverend Henry J. Bevel, Jr. passed away on October 14, 2018, at Wesley Acres Health Center in Des Moines. He left behind his wife of 60 years, Shelvy Ann, their three children (Henry III, Walt, and Roxanna), six grandchildren, and two great-granddaughters. He was buried at the Iowa Veterans Cemetery in Van Meter, Iowa.

Bevel’s legacy extended beyond his family to the community through spiritual care at church and in the VA Hospital, and advocacy for racial equality. He demonstrated how one man could be a soldier, scholar, pastor, and community leader all at once. He truly lived up to his epitaph – a good and faithful servant to his nation and his God.

Bibliography

Primary Sources

Bevel III, Henry. Personal interview with author. November 22, 2024.

“Father-Son Police Team Freed in Shooting Case.” Valdosta Times [Valdosta, GA], December 6, 1951 https://crrjarchive.org/documents/4f17c419j. 

Georgia. Lowndes County. 1940 U.S. Census. Digital images. http://ancestryclasroom.com. 

Georgia. Lowndes County. 1950 U.S. Census. Digital images. http://ancestryclasroom.com. 

Georgia – White and Yellow Pages – Valdosta – 12/1943 to 1/1953. Directory. Library of Congress (usteledirec05917). https://www.loc.gov/item/usteledirec05917/.

Graduating Class of 1951. Photograph. 1951. The Georgia Trust for Historical Preservation. https://www.georgiatrust.org/places-in-peril/dasher-high-school/#foobox-1/9/6-Graduating-class-of-1951.jpg.

Henry J. Bevel, Discharge Special Order, Department of the Army. National Archives and Records Administration – St. Louis.

Iowa Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church. 2019 Iowa Conference Journal. Iowa Annual Conference, 2019. https://www.iaumc.org/files/fileslibrary/journal/2019/2019+memoirs_dead_historical.pdf.

Gammack, Julie. “Parents advise children to enroll in black colleges.” Des Moines Register [Des Moines, IA], March 30, 1991. Proquest (2135291868). 

Ragsdale, Shirley. “Peach march draws novices.“ Des Moines Register [Des Moines, IA], March 21, 2005. Proquest (2137306255). 

“Rev. Henry Bevel Jr.” Des Moines Register [Des Moines, IA], October 18, 2018. https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/desmoinesregister/name/henry-bevel-obituary?id=13003349.

“Reverend Henry J. Bevel, Jr.” Henderson Highland Park Funeral Home. Accessed October 17, 2024. https://www.hendersonsfuneralcare.com/obituaries/reverend-henry-j-bevel-jr.

U.S. Census Bureau. 1950 Census of Agriculture: Preliminary Reports, Volume 2, Chapter 4. U.S. Department of Commerce, 1950. https://www2.census.gov/library/publications/decennial/1950/agriculture-preliminary-reports/41632338v2ch4.pdf.

War Department Technical Manual TM 12-427: Military Occupational Classification of Enlisted Personnel. Government Printing Office, 1944. https://www.416th.com/416th_Lexicon_TM12-427.pdf.

Secondary Sources

Aiello, Thomas. “‘Not Too Far Removed from Slavery’: Police Brutality and Rights Activism in Valdosta, Georgia, 1945–55.” Journal of Civil and Human Rights 5, no. 2 (2019): 34–67. https://doi.org/10.5406/jcivihumarigh.5.2.0034.

George, Mark Patrick, Willie Houseal, and Harry Jenkins, dirs. Pinevale High: Separate, Unequal…Undeterred. 2024. Valdosta State University Archives and Special Collections. https://vtext.valdosta.edu/xmlui/handle/10428/7197.

“Henry J. Bevel III.” Swisher & Cohrt. Accessed November 25, 2024. https://www.swishercohrt.com/henry-j-bevel-iii.

“Moody Air Force Base History.” Moody Air Force Base. Accessed November 13, 2024. https://www.moody.af.mil/About-Us/.Rosenstein, Mark. “Korean Conflict 60^th Anniversary.” Army Communicator, U.S. Army Signal Center, Winter 2010: 4-8.

This profile was funded by a grant from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. The opinions, findings, and conclusions stated herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.