Lamar Kirkland: A veteran’s impact in Gadsden County

Not all men and women are called to serve - and those who are called, are drawn to a number of different service paths.

For Lamar Kirkland, a Quincy resident, he was drawn ultimately to the United States Air Force.

“In high school, I was an athlete,” said Kirkland, who is a 1984 graduate of James A. Shanks High School.

Kirkland played a variety of sports, such as basketball, football, and baseball, but as graduation loomed and no prospects for a sports-scholarship presented themselves, Kirkland said he began thinking of other ways to further his education and pursue a career.

“I decided I needed to do something with my life and myself,” Kirkland said.

The road to a military career was not one that Kirkland was unfamiliar with - he had an uncle who was in the Air Force, and another uncle in the Marines.

Master Sergeant Lamar Kirkland, United States Air Force. Served 1984 - 2006.

After speaking with family, Kirkland chose the United States Air Force as the starting point to his career.

Kirkland said it was the mission statement and goals of the Air Force that ultimately won him over, and on August 20, 1984, he was enlisted.

After his enlistment, Kirkland was sent to Biloxi, Mississippi for training and then assigned to the Eglin Air Force Base, in Eglin, Florida (Okaloosa County).

“The Air Force was suitable for my goals in life,” said Kirkland.

From that August day in 1984 to April 1, 2006, Kirkland served his country as a member of the Air Force - and when he retired in 2006, he had a list of educational accolades under his belt.

“I took all the educational opportunities offered to me,” said Kirkland, who left the Air Force with four associates degrees, two bachelor degrees, one master’s degree, and an educational specialist degree in educational leadership - each with honors. “In the Air Force, there were training opportunities that, otherwise, my family could not have afforded to give me.”

“On a more personal level, I got an opportunity to explore beyond my small home town of Quincy,” said Kirkland, of the Air Force. “I got a chance to travel the world.”

Additionally, Kirkland’s role in the Air Force allowed him to meet and brush elbows with people who he would not have met in Quincy - dignitaries, generals, and the like.

While retirement from the Air Force offered a pension and retirement plan, Kirkland decided he was not yet done making a name for himself and bettering the world around him.

In his youth, Kirkland had been mentored by Dr. James Brown, a former deputy superintendent of the Gadsden County School District, and upon returning home to Quincy, Kirkland decided to put his degree in education to use and get involved with the Gadsden County School System.

Even though full-time retired from the Air Force, Kirkland took a teaching position at St. John’s Elementary School, in Quincy.

Ultimately, Kirkland would become an assistant principal, and then principal at James A. Shanks Middle School, becoming the first graduate of James A. Shanks High School to come back and be the principal of the James A. Shanks Middle School.

Kirkland adds that his time with the school district was a mission that was dear to his heart - getting a chance to come back from the Air Force and play a direct role in the lives of young Gadsden County residents was one he cherished.

“I have always had a passion for education,” said Kirkland. “I truly felt that it was a calling. While in the Air Force, I worked to prepare myself for that mission in education. I knew I was going to do this as soon as I hung that blue [Air Force] uniform up.”

These days, Kirkland is doubly-retired, having since retired from his day-to-day job in the school district, but he is still active in several young lives.

Kirkland says he keeps a presence on school campuses, and during COVID-19, he helped kids whose families were impacted by the shortened work-hours or job-cuts of their parents.

Many afternoons, Kirkland can be found out on a local basketball court, teaching his nephew and nephew’s friends the game of basketball - a reflection of Kirkland’s own athletic roots.

As a native, Kirkland says his family is almost all still in the area - his mother, Alfronia and sister, Toshia, both live in the St. John’s Community, and Kirkland lives in Gadsden County with his wife, Jermaine.

He has two daughters, Kristen and Kiersten, in Tallahassee, and a son, Jalen, who currently works in the Department of Defense at the Air Force base in Warner Robins, Georgia.

“The Air Force gave me discipline, friendships, comradery, and exposure,” said Kirkland - and by all appearances, he has brought a bit of those benefits back home with him, and is giving it back to the children of Gadsden County.

Ashley Hunter - editor@gadsdencountytimes.com

Lamar Kirkland: A veteran’s impact in Gadsden County

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Lamar Kirkland: A veteran’s impact in Gadsden County

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Old Fashioned Americana: Havana Quilt Show and Sale promotes the love of classic quilts

Havana prepares to turn on the lights on downtown Christmas tree

Havana prepares to turn on the lights on downtown Christmas tree

Recommended

Locals and visitors brave the cold for Quincy’s PorchFest

Close battle is waged between Gadsden Jaguars and Lincoln Trojans

Popular News

Newsletter

Category

Site Links

About Us

Welcome Back!

Create New Account!

Retrieve your password

Are you sure want to unlock this post?

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