By Emily Condon
The eleventh hour, of the eleventh day, of the eleventh month commemorates the ending of World War I. Veterans Day, which is celebrated Nov. 11, does not exclude itself from a connection to the Terp community.
Lt. Tim Kemp graduated in the class of 2016 from the University of Maryland as a criminology and criminal justice major major. From his hometown at Kent Island, Maryland, he left UMD to serve the nation in the National Guard.
Kemp was an active member of the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, more commonly known as “ROTC,” during his time on campus. He spent his first two years of college at Chesapeake College, where he obtained an associates degree in criminology before transferring to UMD where he soon joined the ROTC in 2014.
While enrolled at UMD, Kemp enlisted in the Maryland Army National Guard as an airborne infantryman for Charlie Troop 1-158, and in 2016 commissioned as an infantry officer. Kemp shared on a phone call that ROTC at UMD was one of the best teaching experiences in his life.
“A ‘sandbox of leadership’ is the best way to describe it. You learn how to lead and basically get a ton of life experience without the major consequences that you would get from learning those same lessons in a more active military environment,” Kemp said.
After graduation, Kemp was commissioned to the Pennsylvania National Guard, where he served as a rifle platoon leader in Alpha Company 2-112. After this he served as an executive officer and is now the mortar platoon leader for the same battalion. In his time with the National Guard, Kemp lived in Fort Benning, Georgia; Fort Drum, New York; and in Eastern Europe in Macedonia.
“I’ve been in the National Guard pretty much my entire career,” Kemp explained over a phone call.
His public relations mission in Macedonia was one of Kemp’s favorite memories in the military, he shared.
Kemp explained that he enjoyed “being able to kind of see how other people live and to bring a little bit of hope to a portion of the world that’s a little bit more disenfranchised” while in Macedonia.
Stories like those of Lt. Kemp can serve as inspiration for currently enlisted ROTC members on campus. Joseph Rohan Kettish, freshman letters and sciences major in ROTC, explained that for him, Veterans Day allows him to honor those who have come before him. Kemp’s story encompasses this.
“Hearing stories about the contributions of ROTC alumni like Lieutenant Kemp inspire me to seek growth and hold myself to higher standards so that one day my story may inspire others,” Kettish said.
Kemp explained that in his time at UMD, LTC(R) Terrence M. McCall, who still works at the university as a recruiter, was an incredible leader and served as a mentor.
McCall explained over an email that Kemp is a prime example of what UMD’s ROTC program produces, calling him, “a native son who answered the call to serve his nation and his community. He was an outstanding cadet during his time at UMD and has gone on to make us all very proud in both his civilian and military career.”
Now, Kemp is pursuing a career in law enforcement. He is an officer in Queen Anne’s County, but will return in two weeks to a station in Montgomery County. Part of the pull to Montgomery County, closer to campus, included that some of his colleagues from the military work there.
As a final statement over the phone, Kemp commemorated other veterans, who he saw to have more impactful contributions that are to be remembered on this day.
“The people that I graduated with and the other UMD alumni, especially the people who served prior, did a lot more than I have and are probably far more deserving of praise than me,” Kemp concluded.
Below are photos provided by Kemp that showcase some of his life experience. Click on each photo to read Kemp’s description of each photographed moment.
