Kevin Dupont

I don’t know Kevin, I never met him. I never met his wife Lisa either. I wish I had.

Kevin was a Marine, got out and ended up in the Massachusetts National Guard. I am not going to try to tell his life story, but I am going to share what I read about this man.

He died today. He was injured in an IED attack on March 8^th in Afghanistan.

I learned about him from a friend and began following Lisa and Kevin on CaringBridge (a web site that allows families to share the status of those who are ill or injured) and when you see that there were over 32,000 posts in the guestbook you starting sensing the love and concern that not only family members had, but strangers as well.

There were men and women who wrote from Afghanistan not only wishing him well, but keeping him posted on how the fight was going, and if you read through the guest book, you see every state in the union represented, every branch of service and every kind of friend of Kevin who stopped what they were doing and spent some time with Lisa and her story. You see a post from a Marine stationed on the USS Eisenhower, somewhere at sea, somewhere at war.

A former commander shared that as a platoon leader he set the example for his soldiers every day, and always led the way, never side stepping a mission, no matter how tough. “He was eager to do right” says more than any other words can say about a soldier.

Lisa, herself a National Guardsman, has shown us the face of courage, compassion and commitment. We are all honored by her sharing each day, and sometimes the posts she left were well after midnight, revealing the true nature of not only Kevin but of his “Hero” Lisa.

Hundreds of posts are now coming in as the word spreads of his passing, and while he will be listed as one more casualty of a war far away from our minds and far away from the front pages of today’s news, I know that I am a privileged member of a fan club of this remarkable and unforgettable family.

Lisa, you are amazing. God Bless you and your entire family. Kevin, God Speed, and as one post said, “End of Mission”, but we know that you are already starting the next.

We have all heard the phrase, "We will never forget you" and with the story and life of Kevin Dupont, how could you?

Respectfully,

Roger