Town of Hingham’s Director of Veterans’ Services, SCPO Keith Jermyn, USN(Ret.), named as the Regional Representative to the National Suicide and Awareness Flag Corporation

August 7, 2023 Submitted by the Town of Hingham’s Department of Verans’ services 

The Town of Hingham’s Director of Veterans’ Services, SCPO Keith Jermyn, USN(Ret.), has recently been named as the Regional Representative to the National Suicide and Awareness Flag Corporation.

The SAR team’s Primary Mission is to break the stigma of mental health, suicide, and seeking treatment within our warrior culture to facilitate suicide prevention.

To facilitate our Primary Mission, we aim to:

• Raise our continued awareness of the Veteran & Active Military suicide epidemic because we still lose, on average, over 20 Veterans & Military each day.
• Honor the service, and forever remember those Veterans & Active Military lost to suicide as well as honor, respect, and unite their families.
• Be a tangible symbol of hope to living Veterans and Active Military by displaying our solidarity in the daily fight to end Veteran & Active Military suicide.
• Unite Nonprofits (with the SAR Flag) across the country working on combating Veteran & Active military suicide.
• Work with Congress to have the SAR Flag officially recognized (similar to the POW/MIA Flag).
• Work with Congress to have September 22nd annually recognized as “Veterans Suicide Awareness & Remembrance Day.”

The SAR Team will be in Hingham on SUNDAY, 06AUG to honor the one year anniversary of SGT Matthew P. Partyka, USMC who died by suicide last summer at Camp Lejeune, NC.

Massachusetts own “Singing Trooper, Sgt Dan Clark will enlighten the crowd with his rendition of our National Anthem, along with The Marine Corps Hymn,  to pay tribute to Matthew’s family.

The keynote speaker will be Brigadier General Tom Sellars (Ret.), USA

Keith Jermyn Bio:

Construction Electrician Senior Chief Petty Officer Keith A. Jermyn is a lifelong resident of Hingham, Massachusetts where he lives with his wife of thirty-five years, Lisa. They have three grown children: Nicolas (34), Kalli (29), and JT (22), an Ensign in the USN – along with two granddaughters: Arya(5) and Lydia (2).

Keith’s Naval career began in June 1985, just one day after graduating from Hingham High School, at Naval Training Center San Diego, CA.  His deployments include combat operations (Sharp Edge) in Africa and (Desert Shield / Storm) in the Persian Gulf aboard the Guided Missile Destroyer USS Coontz (DDG-40) and the Amphibious Tank Landing Ship USS Fairfax County (LST1193).

Senior Chief Jermyn left Active Duty service in June 1991. Returning home to Hingham, he served an additional two years in a local reserve Seabee Detachment.  He was Honorably Discharged in February 1993 and began his civilian career as a licensed electrician with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local Union #103 of Greater Boston as Shop Steward.

Shortly after witnessing the horrors of 9/11, he re-affiliated with the United States Navy and was assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 27. There he was appointed to the elite Heavy Air Detachment, available for rapid deployment within 72 hours’ notice around the globe. During The War on Terrorism this unit was twice pressed into service, once in 2005 and again in 2008 for Operation Iraqi Freedom.

In 2014 he deployed to the Horn of Africa in support of Operation Enduring Freedom to help quell piracy and insurgency, protecting U.S. interests in the region. Returning in 2015, he was reassigned to the 7th Naval Construction Regiment in Gulfport, MS as the Safety Officer.  In 2018 he began his final tour of duty at the Washington Navy Yard where he coordinated a Force of over 4,400 Seabees as Reserve Assignment Coordinator. On June, 18, 2022, he officially retired from naval service after serving 28 years.

Jermyn is now a Certified Veterans’ Service Officer for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and is responsible for delivering a vast array of local, state, and federal benefits within his district. He is a staunch advocate for our military, veterans, and both Blue and Gold Star Families, working diligently to enact meaningful and beneficial legislation at every level of government.

As a 100% service-connected disabled veteran, Keith is no stranger to disabilities both seen, and unseen.  Eighteen months ago, he was paired with an ADI accredited service dog named Mario. This beautiful three-year-old Pointer-Hound mix was trained for Keith by the nation’s largest provider of Service Dogs for veterans called K9’s For Warriors. Determined to end veteran suicide, they provide highly trained service dogs to military veterans suffering from PTSD, TBI, or MST. With the majority of dogs coming from high-kill shelters, this innovative program allows the K9 / Warrior Team to build an unwavering bond that facilitates their collective healing and recovery, thereby saving two lives!

Jermyn’s career in the Navy has taken him around the world several times, but he remains a true “son of Hingham.” His devotion to duty is fed by the Latin motto Pro Deo et Patria (For God and Country) and when asked, he unequivocally states, “There’s no place like home!”