Former SPS presented Va. Distinguished Service Medal

Maj. Gen. Daniel E. Long, Jr., the Adjutant General of Virginia, presents Judge Marla Graff Decker with the Virginia Distinguished Service Medal Dec. 4, 2013, in Richmond. The VDSM is the highest decoration the Commonwealth of Virginia can award, and it was presented to Decker for her significant contributions to the Virginia National Guard as the Secretary of Public Safety. Governor Bob McDonnell appointed Decker to serve as SPS at the start of his term in January 2010, and he appointed Decker to the Court of Appeals of Virginia effective Nov. 1, 2013. McDonnell appointed Deputy Secretary Bryan Rhode to replace Decker as SPS. Decker, Rhode and Deputy Public Safety Secretary Brian Swan presented Long with a Certificate of Recognition signed by Governor McDonnell in honor of Long's nearly 50 years of service in uniform.