Hampton Bays Students Honor A Local Military Hero

HAMPTON BAYS, NY — Hampton Bays students once again paid tribute a local hero.

The children raised an American flag high in honor throughout the month of February for Senior Master Sergeant Erik S. Blom, of Hampton Bays.

Blom was recognized at a ceremony on Feb. 14 at Hampton Bays Elementary School, where district middle school students read his biography and the middle school chorus performed. The event culminated with the raising of the flag on the school’s flagpole, the district said.

Blom, school officials said, was born in 1975 in Nassau County, but soon moved upstate after his father retired from the U.S. Army Special Forces. He knew from an early age that he wanted to be involved with the military; as a junior at Gloversville High School, he enlisted in the U.S. Army and completed his basic training at Fort Benning, GA, during the summer before his senior year. He graduated high school in 1994, the district said.

At Fort Benning, Blom completed his airborne training and qualifications, and, in 1996, he completed the requirements for the Army Ranger badge and then, his medical training at Fort Bragg, NC. He was assigned to the 75th Ranger Regiment, again at Fort Benning, the district said.

Next, Blom decided to enlist in the New York Air National Guard; in 2000, he joined the Guard and was accepted for Air Force pararescue training, what some feel is one of the most difficult and dangerous jobs in the service. "It was a grueling 24-month training program that he completed in 18 months because of his prior training in the Army," the district said.

After his graduation in 2002, he was assigned to the 103rd Rescue Squadron in Westhampton Beach. Although Blom found his calling in the Air National Guard in March 2010, he changed his status from full-time to part-time, still participating in several U.S military operations overseas, including Northern Watch, a combined task force operation enforcing the no-fly zone in northern Iraq; Inherent Resolve, which was the military intervention against the Islamic State, or ISIS, in Syria and Iraq with the unit motto “one mission, many nations;” and the better known Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom campaigns, the district said.

Those assignments required that he participate both in combat and human operations in countries including Iraq, Afghanistan, Turkey, Djibouti and Kenya.

"One of his proudest assignments was working with NASA on space shuttle launches," the district said in a release. "His assignment was to be on alert and ready to respond to space shuttle incidents anywhere in the world that required an immediate pararescue presence. It was a credit to his training and capability that NASA trusted him with such a sensitive and critical mission."

While stationed at the 103rd, Blom responded and saved lives in both the U.S. and the Caribbean in four separate hurricane incidents, the district added. "The devastation of Hurricanes Katrina, Sandy, Harvey and Irma would have been worse if not for Blom’s pararescue skills."

He also participated in one of the longest search and rescue missions conducted by the 103rd. In 2018, he and his team were flown 1,500 miles into the Atlantic in an Air Force C-130 and saved the lives of two sailors on a container ship in distress. Recently, Esquire magazine printed a story about Blom and that operation, district officials added.

Amongst his 30 medals and ribbons includes recognition from the Army, Air Force and NATO. "The one he is most proud of is the Bronze Star with a 'V' device for valor in combat. In 2012, Blom was involved in a helicopter rescue in the middle of a firefight in Afghanistan, where he saved the lives of two American soldiers and a U.S. coalition partner," the district said.

Blom’s wife, Emily, is from Marblehead, MA; they have three children, Ryder and Sydney, who attend Hampton Bays Elementary School, and Taylor, who will be in the district in a few years.

Blom is presently the pararescue team leader of the 106th operations group, referred to as the Guardian Angel Rescue Squadron, at Gabreski Airport.

When not actively involved in pararescue operations, Blom is a SWAT officer with the Suffolk County Police Emergency Service Unit, a member of their sniper team, and an FBI-certified firearms instructor. He is also completing his college education at Excelsior University and is an active member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

“The district is proud to honor Mr. Blom for his bravery and service to the United States,” said Superintendent of Schools Lars Clemensen.