Maryann Cowan had a hard time recognizing her hometown when she returned to Lake Havasu City for the first time in years.

American Legion Post 81 Commander Kenneth Haugen salutes the American flag alongside Navy service member Maryann Cowan Saturday morning at the Post during the National Anthem. The Post welcomed Cowan back to her hometown after being deployed several times overseas in her 10-year career in the Navy. Jackie Leatherman/News-Herald Photo.

“The whole town (has changed),” she said. “It has gotten so much bigger, a lot bigger. All these houses that weren’t there before. And then the Wal-Mart moved. I’ve noticed a huge amount of growth. It is just crazy. There is a mall now that wasn’t here two years ago, which they have been planning forever to have one. “

American Legion Post 81 welcomed Cowan home, a Navy service member since 1999, with a get-together Saturday morning. Cowan, a 28-year-old aircraft engine mechanic, was last deployed to Norfolk, Va., in 2006 to work on the aircraft carrier, USS Enterprise. The 1999 graduate of Lake Havasu High School now lives in Oak Harbor, Wash.

Her four deployments have mainly taught her about different cultures and the difference between how cultures are represented on television and reality. She said the most dramatic example of the difference was when she spent time in Croatia, a country smaller than West Virginia in Eastern Europe.

“Because for several years before we went, they were at civil war and we went to Croatia … and it was just beautiful,” she said. “Everyone was friendly. It didn’t look like they were in a civil war and it didn’t even look like they ended a civil war.”

Kenneth Haugen, commander of Post 81 said it felt “great” to welcome her home.

“It’s great every time we do it,” he said.

You may contact the reporter at jleatherman@havasunews.com