Ceremony to honor Marine Corps, Army veteran
Name: Gregory Hill. Service branches: Marine Corps, Army.
December’s Humboldt Hero is Eureka Police Department Sgt. Gregory Hill. Hill joined the Marines in July of 1997. After completing training and attending Military Police school, he was stationed in Okinawa, Japan for a year where he worked as an MP patrolling Camp Kinser. After his time in Japan, Greg was stationed in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Shortly after arriving in Camp Lejeune, he was assigned to the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit that deployed on a Navy ship in January 2000 to the Mediterranean Sea.
During his deployment on ship, Hill traveled to Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Ukraine, Israel, Crete, Turkey and Macedonia. His unit also spent six weeks assisting the United Nations in peacekeeping operations in Kosovo.
Upon his return to the U. S., Hill worked as a pistol and rifle instructor at Camp Lejeune. In July of 2001, he was honorably discharged from active duty having achieved the rank of corporal.
Hill moved back home to Humboldt County and attended the College of the Redwoods Police Academy. Upon graduation, he was hired by the Fortuna Police Department in 2002.
In February of 2003, while working as a police officer for Fortuna, Greg received orders from the USMC Reserve Headquarters ordering him to report to Camp Pendleton, California, where he was initially activated as a Combat Casualty Replacement for the invasion of Iraq. He was later assigned to work as an MP patrolling Camp Pendleton.
Hill was discharged from his reserve activation in August 2003 and returned to Fortuna to continue his work as a police officer. In May 2005, Greg accepted employment with the Eureka Police Department.
In June 2007, Hill joined the California Army National Guard as an MP and was later placed on active duty and sent to Fort Bliss, Texas, for premobilization training. In February 2011, Hill’s unit was deployed to Afghanistan to train and mentor the Afghan Uniform Police. His 12- soldier squad was assigned to Combat Outpost Terezayi, about 10 miles from the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. During that time, they worked with an infantry company with the 1st Army Division to patrol their district with the Afghan Police. Hill was the assistant squad leader and participated in over 125 patrols within the district.
Hi l l returned home from Afghanistan in late December 2011 and was discharged from active duty in January 2012 and completed his time in the National Guard in June 2013 having achieved the rank of sergeant.
If you go
What: Monthly Humboldt Heroes celebration.
When: Noon today
Where: 537 7th St., Eureka. Social distancing and masks required.
Nominate a “Humboldt Hero”: “Humboldt Heroes” normally honors local veterans on the last Friday of the month. If you’d like to nominate a local veteran for recognition, or help sponsor the ongoing program, contact State Farm insurance agent Scott Hammond at 707-444-2504.