HATTIESBURG, Miss. (WHLT) – The City of Hattiesburg has named Master Sgt. Rex C. Hasty as veteran of the year.

The native of Fairbanks, Alaska, began his career in the U.S. Air Force as a mechanic in 1979 before serving in the Air Force Reserve and the Air National Guard until he was honorably discharged in 2007. He moved to Hattiesburg in 2013 where he has worked in leadership at the local VFW and American Legion Post.

Hasty is the primary driver of the VA shuttle bus, which takes local veterans to the VA Hospital in Jackson each week. Hasty was chosen for contribution to the Hattiesburg community.

“I went in, went into the Air Force, right out of base, right out of high school, and I made that a career move. At first, I thought I was going to get out and conquer the world with these great ideas and find out that’s a little harder than you would think. So, I decided to stay in the military and did my job. My big job was training people. I had several people I trained throughout the years. And with 27 and a half years of total service, it turned out really well for me,” he said.

Hasty will be honored during the city’s annual Veterans Day ceremony at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, November 10 at Veterans Memorial Park, which will be followed by the Veterans Day parade.