Capt. Steve Hamer retired from military service in July 2017 and is currently the president of the Seabee Historical Foundation, which proudly preserves, promotes and perpetuates the rich heritage of the U.S. Navy Seabee military construction force and Civil Engineer Corps. He is also the executive director of the Seabee Memorial Scholarship Foundation, the nation’s only provider of need-based scholarships exclusively to the children and grandchildren of America’s fighting Seabees and Civil Engineer Corps.
Hamer was born in Nichols, South Carolina, is a 1987 Clemson civil engineering graduate and is a registered professional engineer in South Carolina. While attending Clemson, he was a member of Chi Epsilon, Blue Key, ASCE Student Chapter, Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Clemson University Symphonic Band and Clemson University Gospel Choir. After graduating from Clemson, he received his MSCE from the University of Maryland.
Captain Hamer married Angella Newell Hamer in 1992. They currently reside in the Charleston area and have two children, Sydney, 2017 Clemson Graduate in Political Science, and James, a 2020 Clemson Graduate in Finance. He currently serves on the Glenn Department of Civil Engineering External Board of Advisors.
In 1987, Hamer began his military career as a U. S. Navy Civil Engineer Corps officer. He commanded engineering units during the Iraq War and led numerous disaster recovery and humanitarian assistance operations worldwide. He oversaw facilities sustainment programs and construction of multi-billion dollar Navy and Department of Defense projects in Southern California, the National Capital region and throughout the U. S. Southeast. Other assignments included coordinating operations for all Navy expeditionary forces and serving in senior staff positions in the Pentagon and other Navy operational headquarters.
Just a few of his notable assignments included:
Director, Maritime Headquarters
July 2016-June 2017
Virginia Beach, Virginia
Hamer directed a 300-person headquarters staff responsible for staffing, training and equipping expeditionary Navy forces for worldwide execution of construction, logistics support, maritime security and disaster recovery.
Operations Officer, Navy Expeditionary Combat Command
April 2012-June 2014
Virginia Beach, Virginia
Hamer supervised planning and coordination of all activities relating to operations for the 20,000-person Navy Expeditionary Force. He provided sourcing solutions for engineering, security, intelligence and logistics personnel in response to geographic demand for naval forces.
Commanding Officer of Construction Bethesda
June 2010-June 2012
Bethesda, Maryland
Hamer led a 200-person engineering and acquisition team in the construction of the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. He was responsible for all financial, contractual, project management, community outreach and safety aspects of the Department of Defense’s largest medical construction project.
Deputy Executive Assistant to the Vice Chief of Naval Operations
April 2008-April 2010
The Pentagon, Washington D.C.
Hamer coordinated daily activities for the Navy’s second senior uniformed official.
Commanding Officer, Naval Mobile Construction Battalion FOUR
Jul 2006-Apr 2008
Port Hueneme, California
Hamer led a 650-person navy engineer battalion providing construction for worldwide military operations, disaster recovery and humanitarian assistance.
Thank you, Capt. Hamer, for your service to the United States of America and Clemson University.
