Las Vegas Sun

May 19, 2024

This August 2019 photo provided by the Nevada Army National Guard shows Sgt. 1st Class Benjamin Hopper of the Nevada Army National Guard at a deployment ceremony in Nevada. Hopper, who is serving in Afghanistan, received a uniform religious exemption to sport a beard based on his Norse pagan beliefs. He is the first guard soldier to receive a religious accommodation for a beard.

Sgt. 1st Class Erick Studenicka / Nevada Army National Guard / AP

This August 2019 photo provided by the Nevada Army National Guard shows Sgt. 1st Class Benjamin Hopper of the Nevada Army National Guard at a deployment ceremony in Nevada. Hopper, who is serving in Afghanistan, received a uniform religious exemption to sport a beard based on his Norse pagan beliefs. He is the first guard soldier to receive a religious accommodation for a beard.