January 17, 2020
On Thursday January 30th at 7 pm Hingham High School will welcome Special Forces veteran and Weymouth resident, Kevin Flike. Flike will address the Hingham community at large and present his documentary “Wounded By War, But Never Broken.” This recently-released documentary details his lengthy recovery from a gunshot wound sustained in 2011 while fighting in Afghanistan.
“An experience is worth nothing unless you share it,” says Flike. His experience, and the message that he brings to Hingham, is one of determination with a powerful reminder to live life to the fullest, especially in the face of adversity.
Flike’s visit to Hingham will also include an in-school forum with the entire high school student body.
“I am thrilled that every one of our students will have an opportunity to see Kevin Flike when he visits our school,” said HHS principal Rick Swanson. “Mr. Flike’s message is not only important and inspiring, but it’s urgent. Now more than ever, our students need to have encounters with genuine role models whose lives offer powerful examples of resilience, grit, commitment, service and sacrifice. These are the same values that lie at the heart of our school’s mission. I’m grateful for people like Kevin Flike who personify those values. And I’m grateful for the support of both the Hingham Sports Partnership and the Hingham Education Foundation, two of our most cherished community partners, whose generosity will make this event possible.”
Kevin began his career as a Special Forces Engineer assigned to the 1st Special Forces Group after graduating from Union College (BA), and deployed to the Philippines, Thailand and twice to Afghanistan. During his second Afghanistan deployment, on September 25, 2011, Kevin suffered a gunshot wound to the lower abdomen. His physical recovery, though difficult and prolonged, was just the beginning of his journey.
Kevin since went on to earn dual Masters' Degrees from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government (MPA) and the MIT Sloan School of Management (MBA) and now serves as Director of Strategic Projects for Threat Stack, a Boston based cyber-security firm and as a member of the Board of Directors for the Green Beret Foundation.
Kevin speaks to numerous organizations about his experiences and the lessons learned from his service, being wounded, and the recovery process. Kevin’s mission is to inspire and help others with their own journey toward physical, mental and emotional healing.
"We all go through difficult periods in our lives, “ says Flike. "Those periods can define us either negatively or positively, and that’s a choice. Asking for help, receiving help and giving help is how I discovered the best version of myself.”
Both presentations are made possible by funding from the Hingham Sports Partnership and the Hingham Education Foundation.
