Speaker
1st Lt Jerry Camp
- Public Affairs Officer, California Wing
1st Lt Jerry Camp, CAP is a native San Diegan with a lifelong love of aviation. This love was nurtured by his father who was a Master Chief Ordinanceman and Air Gunner on the USS Constellation. Master Chief Camp would take his young son to work just to be around the jets. Lt Camp started flying in 1984 at Montgomery Field and pursed Aviation Degrees at San Diego Mesa College and San Jose State University. Lt Camp graduated in 1987 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Aeronautical Operations with an emphasis in Flight Operations. As Lt Camp says, “The single worst year in aviation history to graduate with an aero degree.”
With a young family, Lt Camp needed a J-O-B and landed a position as an Investigator with the Public Utilities Commission starting a 25-year career in Law Enforcement. Lt Camp retired in 2014 as a Supervising Investigator with DMV Investigations where he specialized in high tech crime. Completing his career as the supervisor of the Border Crimes Units (Operation Stone Garden).
Over the years Lt Camp did not give up on aviation. He completed his Private Pilot’s License and started his Instrument Rating and flew when there was money in the budget. As part of his aviation study, Lt Camp read about CAP and wanted to join in 2000, but work and family life had to come first.
In 2014, a chance encounter at Coast Guard Station San Diego, during Operation Stone Garden meeting led Lt Camp to CAP. Maj Roy Knight noticed Lt Camp’s watch and said, “With a watch like that, you must be a pilot” and Lt Camp was invited to visit Squadron 87.
Since 2014, Lt Camp has been the Public Affairs Officer of Fallbrook Senior Squadron 87, San Diego Group 8, and the California Wing, where he uses his knowledge of photography and computers to produce content. Lt Camp has been the Group 8 PAO of the year three times, Wing PAO of the year, and Pacific Region PAO of the year. Lt Camp has been successful in producing a number of TV and Newspaper stories about CAP that were used verbatim by the outlets in their reporting. Lt Camp has also appeared on radio and aviation podcasts promoting CAP and the California Wing,
In addition to his PAO duties, Lt Camp is a CD Qualified Mission Observer and VFR pilot in addition to other qualifications. Also, if you have ever attended a Group 8 SAREX you know Jerry knows his way around the kitchen and loves to feed the troops at these activities. This is where he acquired his callsign, “Cookie”.
Lt Camp is married to Eileen Camp and has two wonderful daughters, two fantastic granddaughters, and a great son-in-law and currently lives in Murrieta to be close to those grandbabies.