Kevin Hanlon

Commander Kevin Hanlon, USN (Ret) passed away the day after his 90th birthday. He was born on Christmas Day, 1926 in Bethlehem, PA to Admiral Byron Hall Hanlon and Lady Brown Hanlon of Coronado, California. As a teenager, CDR Hanlon witnessed the bombing of Pearl Harbor by the Japanese in December 1941. In 1948, he became the third-generation of his family to graduate from the United States Naval Academy, following his father (USNA 1921) and his maternal grandfather, Commodore Guy Warner Brown (USNA 1879). CDR Hanlon's first assignment was aboard the USS Keyes (DD787) in the Pacific. In 1950, he attended Submarine School in in New London, Connecticut, and served subsequently in various capacities aboard the USS Grampus (SS 523) and USS Trutta (SS 421). He began a tour as Division Engineer 21 in New London in 1954, but was selected in 1955 to be the first-officer-in-charge of the Navy's only experimental midget submarine, X-1. CDR Hanlon then reported as an instructor to the NROTC Unit at Columbia University, where he met and married Jo Anne Doyle of Ossining, New York. In 1958, CDR Hanlon became the Executive Officer aboard the USS CARP (SS 338), and, in 1961, he attended the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island. This was followed by a tour at the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations in Washington, DC. CDR Hanlon's next assignment was as Executive Officer aboard the USS Seminole (AKA 104), following which he was assigned to the Joint Staff of the Commander-in-Chief Pacific in 1965. His final tour was as Commanding Officer of the NROTC Unit at Yale University, during which he concurrently earned a Master of Science degree in Business Management from RPI. CDR Hanlon retired from the USN in 1972 and went to work for the State University of New York System. For sixteen years, he was the Dean of Financial Affairs at Suffolk Community College on Long Island that, at the time, was the largest community college in the country. In 1988, CDR Hanlon again retired and relocated to Annapolis, Maryland. CDR Hanlon was much beloved by his family and friends for his wonderful sense of humor. A lifelong dog enthusiast, CDR Hanlon had a special love for terriers, which he enjoyed both for their moxie and outsized personalities. Active even in the final years of his life, CDR Hanlon was a lifelong gardener, a longtime member of the USNA Golf Club, and a parishioner at St. Mary Church in Annapolis, MD. CDR Hanlon was predeceased by his parents and his bother Peter Hanlon of Mt. Airy, MD. He is survived by his wife of 58 years, Jo Anne Hanlon, and their children - Katharine Golden of Ridgefield, CT, Mary La Jeunesse of Ridgefield, CT, CAPT Peter Hanlon USN (Ret) (USNA 1985) of McLean, VA, Anne Marie Bartholet of South Salem, NY, CDR James Hanlon USN (USNA 2001), currently stationed at Pearl Harbor, and 17 grandchildren. Friends and family may call at the John M. Taylor Funeral Home, Inc. 147 Duke of Gloucester Street, Annapolis, MD 21401 on Thursday January 5, 2017 from 2 to 4 and 6 to 8 PM. A Memorial Service will be held on Friday January 6, 2017 at 12 PM noon at the USNA Main Chapel in Annapolis, MD followed by inurnment at the USNA Columbarium. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to Ranger Rosary at St. Mary's Church Annapolis or Navy/USMC Relief.