During their annual meeting at the Colvin Community Center in Radcliff on Wednesday, the Knox Regional Development Alliance (KRDA) honored the late Radcliff-based real estate professional, small business owner, community leader and Fort Knox advocate Pam Featherstone with the fourth annual Greater Fort Knox Region Defense Community Champion award from the Association of Defense Communities (ADC). This achievement also means Featherstone is nominated to receive the national award, which will be presented at the ADC National Summit in Washington D.C. this spring.
Featherstone was a longtime community leader whose professional life was defined by service, collaboration and a dedication to military families who call the Greater Fort Knox region home. A small business owner, Realtor and City of Radcliff Planning and Zoning commissioner, Featherstone consistently leveraged her roles to strengthen quality of life in the Fort Knox area and protect the long-term viability of the installation.
KRDA worked closely with Featherstone through her leadership with the Heart of Kentucky Association of REALTORS (HKAR), where she became a critical partner in advancing the Fort Knox Compatible Use Plan. In late 2022, Featherstone helped convene discussions between KRDA, Fort Knox leadership and real estate professionals to address the need for clearer disclosures for homebuyers purchasing property near the installation, ensuring buyers understood the realities of living near a major military training environment, including live-fire exercises, low-flying aircraft and the addition of the new Digital Air Ground Integration Range (DAGIR).
Understanding that informed buyers help prevent complaints that could limit training and threaten military readiness, Featherstone worked with association leadership and legal counsel to incorporate new disclosure language into standard real estate contracts. After nearly 18 months, the language was approved, directly supporting Fort Knox’s training mission and long-term sustainability.
Featherstone’s dedication to Fort Knox extended far beyond this single effort. For more than three decades as a Realtor, she helped military families buy and sell homes while ensuring they felt welcomed, supported and connected to the community. Alongside her late husband, Marvin, a veteran, she owned and operated small businesses designed to improve quality of life for families in the Fort Knox area, including a furniture store, skating rink and youth-focused dance hall.
Featherstone was also instrumental in developing the HKAR leadership program. In partnership with KRDA, she helped establish “Fort Knox Day” as part of the program, recognizing that realtors are often a military family’s first point of contact and serve as ambassadors for the community.
Tragically, Featherstone passed away last year following a car accident just before she was set to accompany leadership program participants on a visit to DAGIR, which she had worked tirelessly to protect.
“KRDA, Fort Knox and the Greater Fort Knox Region lost an extraordinary partner and champion in Pam Featherstone,” said KRDA Board Chair Brian Kerr. “Pam’s leadership and compassion offer a lasting model for defense communities nationwide, demonstrating how strong relationships, practical solutions and dedicated local leadership can protect military missions while strengthening the communities that surround them.”
Representatives from HKAR were on hand to accept the award in Featherstone’s memory, including Amy Duvall, Tara Wilson and Robin Cole. They were all visibly moved by the recognition of their friend and mentor.
“Pam meant so much to all of us,” said Duvall. “She loved this community and most especially Fort Knox. This award will be prominently displayed at the new HKAR offices in Elizabethtown.”
Brig. Gen. Charlone Stallworth, Deputy Commanding General for Operations, U.S. Army Recruiting Division (USARD), served as the guest speaker at the annual meeting. She shared an update on the Army’s nationwide recruiting efforts to man both the Active Army and the U.S. Army Reserve, emphasizing the critical role recruiting plays in maintaining national security and military readiness.
Headquartered at Fort Knox, USARD provides command, control and staff support to the recruiting force of more than 12,000.
“I appreciate the opportunity to join you and share updates on the important work of the U.S. Army Recruiting Division,” Brig. Gen. Stallworth said. “Strong partnerships with organizations like KRDA help ensure our communities understand the mission and remain connected to the Soldiers and families we serve.”
Following Brig. Gen. Stallworth’s remarks, KRDA President/CEO Col (Ret) Lance O’Bryan recapped the organization’s work to protect and promote Fort Knox in 2025. He highlighted a recent trip to Washington, D.C. in which a distinguished group of regional leaders joined KRDA staff to meet with officials at the Pentagon and on Capitol Hill.
Discussions revolved around why Fort Knox is ideally suited for mission growth, highlighting the outcome of a recent cost-benefit analysis, which showcased what sets the Greater Fort Knox Region apart from other defense communities.
“We know community quality of life plays a key role in stationing decisions. Whether it’s childcare, housing or utility costs, taxes, transportation infrastructure or access to healthcare, our region provides the best and most affordable option compared to countless others,” said O’Bryan. “We were proud to share that story with key decision-makers in Washington; and, to have a group of community leaders from all different sectors spoke volumes about how much this region values and supports Fort Knox.”
In 2026, O’Bryan looks to build upon these recent efforts with continued advocacy for mission growth on post as well as defense sector economic development off post.
O’Bryan thanked the assembled group for their ongoing support.
“Thanks to all of you, we are able to do this work and be completely mission-focused. It is a privilege to serve this community and Fort Knox,” he said.
O’Bryan specifically recognized the service of departing KRDA board members Keith Johnson, John Tindall and Jim Fugitte.
“Without their work and commitment to Fort Knox, there wouldn’t be a KRDA,” O’Bryan said.
O’Bryan also took the time to introduce and welcome KRDA’s newest board members: Phillip Kemp of Scotty’s Contracting; Jenny Geist, representing the HKAR; and Keri Anne Smialek, who will fill the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) Fort Knox Chapter’s ex officio board seat.
