“Those who have long enjoyed such privileges as we enjoy, forget in time that men have died to win them. ”
On this reverent Memorial Day, we gather at the base of Les Braves II: At Water’s Edge sculpture, where we will pause and reflect on the selfless souls who gave everything to defend our freedoms.
They are our fathers and our brothers, our mothers and our sisters. They are our friends and our neighbors. They are the heroes next door. Their stories of sacrifice and courage must be preserved and shared with every generation so that we may as a community always be mindful of the selfless, brave individuals that are responsible for keeping our nation free.
This time-honored ceremony will include musical tributes, remarks of remembrance and honor, and a recitation of the names of Grosse Pointe residents who lost their lives in service to our country.
This year’s keynote speaker is Lt. Col. Stephen Klenke, 127th Wing Base Civil Engineer at Selfridge Air National Guard Base. As the Base Civil Engineer, Klenke is responsible for managing 2,300,000 square feet of facilities, 1,200,000 square yards of airfield pavement and providing Base Operating Support to 40 Mission Partner organizations. He leads a full-time multi-disciplinary team of 157 professionals providing sustainment, maintenance, repair and Emergency Services to 260 buildings and over 3,000 acres.
May 26, 2025
10:00am
The lakefront lawn of the historic Alger House.
Free and open to the public, but registration is required. Please register at the link below.
About Lt. Col. Stephen Klenke
Lt. Col. Klenke received his commission from the U.S. Air Force Academy after graduating as the top Civil Engineering Cadet in the Class of 2007. His first duty station was Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado as part of the 21st Civil Engineer Squadron. During his time at Peterson, Klenke served as the SABER Chief and deployed to Afghanistan twice. His first deployment was to Jalalabad, Afghanistan as part of a Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT). As one of two Civil Engineers on the PRT, Klenke was responsible for overseeing approximately $150 million in construction of schools, roads and water wells for the approximately 2.7 million Afghans in the Nangahar Province. His second deployment was to Kandahar, Afghanistan as part of the 777th Expeditionary Prime BEEF Squadron (EPBS). As part of the EPBS, he led a team of 4 personnel executing over 70 project requirements valued at approximately $7 million throughout Regional Command-South. After his assignment at Peterson, Klenke was selected to attend Graduate School at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor to pursue his Master’s Degree in Structural Engineering. He then taught at the U.S. Air Force Academy as an Assistant Professor of Civil Engineering for three years. Upon separating from Active Duty in the summer of 2016, Klenke joined the 127 CES in the Michigan Air National Guard at Selfridge ANGB. For approximately three years, he served as a Drill Status Guardsmen in the 127 CES while working full time in the private sector as a structural engineer for Tetra Tech. At Tetra Tech, Klenke was responsible for load rating and designing concrete and steel highway bridges. In June 2019, Klenke joined the 127 CES as the full time Deputy Base Civil Engineer. While serving as the Deputy Base Civil Engineer at Selfridge, Klenke deployed to Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar as the Chief of Engineering for the 577th Prime BEEF Squadron where he led 30 engineers in the completion of 28 projects throughout 7 different countries. Klenke was selected for his current role as the Selfridge Base Civil Engineer in June 2023.