L. Wright Wallace is an anthropologist and historian, currently completing her graduate degree at Harvard University. Her research focuses on military families, memory, and the anthropology of grief. Her debut novel, A Wingman for Miss Universe, based on the true story of Vietnam fighter pilot Dennis Peek and Miss USA Sylvia Hitchcock, was published in April 2026. She is the cofounder, researcher, and documentarian of the Van of Valor mission.
Together, Kevin and Lauren spent 280 days traveling 27,106 miles across the United States, collecting the stories of 317 Purple Heart recipients and Gold Star family members and memorializing 443 fallen heroes on the sides of their van. They live in North Port, Florida, with their dog, Sunny, where the Van of Valor now rests as a permanent memorial and museum.
