Twenty-seven years “chock full of fun” is how the Commanding Officer of Station Fort Myers Beach describes his career in the United States Coast Guard. CWO4 Jeffrey Kerner, the rare petty officer to reach Officer-in-Charge status and then actually be assigned to that position, has done it all.
As a kid, he vacationed with his family every year on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Watching the Coast Guard boats patrolling offshore, he made an early career choice that stuck. He joined up in 1983, about a year out of high school, and took his basic training at Cape May, NJ. As luck would have it, his first real duty station was at Oregon Inlet, smack in the middle of the Outer Banks he loved.
While advancing to the rank of BM2 at Oregon Inlet, Mr. Kerner also qualified for the coveted Coast Guard Surfman designation. Surfmen are the only Coast Guard coxswains who are routinely assigned to hazardous rescue missions in breaking surf. To achieve that status, they undergo four to six years of intense training. Part of that time is spent at Cape Disappointment, WA, where the tragic loss of three crewmen in 1997 prompted the Coast Guard to revamp the Surfman program. Upon graduating and returning to his station at Oregon Inlet, Mr.Kerner qualified as a Surfman there, one of only a few units on the East Coast. He holds Surfman Number 179, a designation -- like other Surfman numbers – that will never be awarded to another.
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| Surfmen at Quillayute Harbor, Washington |
At duty stations from New York to Key West, Mr.Kerner continued to advance through the ranks to Chief. His closest encounter with the Auxiliary was as Officer-in-Charge at the Sodus Point Station on Lake Ontario, which was completely run by volunteers from the Auxiliary. He was the only active duty officer there and speaks warmly of the dedication and efficiency of the volunteer staff. While there he actually joined the local flotilla and still maintains his Auxiliary membership.
His later assignments included stints aboard Coast Guard cutters CLEAT in Philadelphia, POINT LOBOS in Pensacola, and the 110-foot PADRE in Key West.
After his commission as Chief Warrant Officer in 2001, he became heavily engaged in law enforcement. In plainclothes, he worked for the CG’s Investigative Service in New York City. Later he acted as bodyguard for Washington bigwigs. Enhancing his career as a Coast Guard cop were awards for Expert Rifle and Expert Pistol. .
Mr. Kerner is outspoken in his admiration for the Coast Guard Auxiliary. What he likes best is the people, he says. “From a professional standpoint, the amount of work that you do -- for nothing but your own satisfaction -- continually amazes me.” It is this “sense of service” that impresses him the most. He and his wife plan to retire in the local area, where the Auxiliary expects he will continue to be active.
We are proud to call him one of our own.
