Syracuse Employee and Army Veteran, Ed Kiewra will be honored as the Hometown Hero during the Syracuse Men’s Football game vs. Boston College on Saturday, November 25, 2017.
Lieutenant Colonel Kiewra was commissioned as a military intelligence second lieutenant in the US Army in September 1970 through the ROTC program at Hofstra University. Having been detailed as an infantry officer for his first year, he graduated from the infantry officer basic course, Ranger School, and jump school prior to his first assignment with the 25th Infantry Division. After serving as both a mortar and rifle platoon leader in an infantry company, he moved on to serving in several different capacities as an intelligence officer, including providing intelligence support for contingency operations assigned to the Division.
His next assignment was with the 82nd Airborne Division, where he served as the intelligence staff officer in an airborne infantry battalion, a Division intelligence reconnaissance and surveillance staff officer, and a company commander in the Division’s military intelligence battalion. He had many memorable and personally rewarding experiences as a commander, to include leading his company on an 8-mile run in formation, with the entire unit completing the run in just over one hour.
Following his five years with the 82nd Airborne Division, he served as a special security officer at a remote installation on the Black Sea coast in Turkey. He returned to the US for an assignment as a systems manager with the US Army Intelligence and Security Command, where he assessed future technical requirements and coordinated logistical and training life-cycle support for new technical systems at several strategic signals intelligence installations.
He was then assigned as a strategic intelligence officer with the Defense Intelligence Agency. In this capacity, he exercised primary analytical responsibilities for issues 
related to command, control, and communications functions associated with the transportation systems of former Warsaw Pact countries. He also researched, authored, and published four comprehensive studies and a number of shorter analytical papers and assessments related to Soviet military logistical capabilities and vulnerabilities in Afghanistan that were disseminated at the highest levels of the Department of Defense and Executive Branch, as well as to members of Congress.
His final assignment was at the Defense Language Institute, where he graduated from the Italian language course and served as the associate dean of the Asian School at the Institute. He retired from active military service in January 1991.
Lieutenant Colonel Kiewra’s commitment and dedication to the Army, its mission, and the soldiers with whom her served was best summarized by one of his battalion commanders, who said, “If I had to take my battalion into combat, I would want (then) Captain Kiewra as one of my company commanders.”