A local veteran is leaving behind years of serving her country on the front lines to open up her own store in Hermitage.

Gia Hart-Kokor is retiring this month as a First Sergeant in the Army after 24 years

She is opening a store that specializes in soaps on East State street in the Brannon Square Plaza called Maison-de-savon, House of Soap.

Recently Hart was assigned to the unit that runs the ROTC program for YSU & KSU.