Major Melvyn Kloor and his wife Anita have been married for 30 years and reside in Sierra Vista, Arizona. They have 4 children and 7 grandchildren. When not on assignment with the U.S. Government, Mel volunteers on the staff of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords (8th District, Arizona), where he serves as a member on her Congressional Veterans Advisory Council. As a service-connected disabled veteran himself, Mel mentors and counsels severely combat disabled veterans returning from OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM in Iraq, and OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM in Afghanistan. Mel helps these veterans transition back to civilian life and upon request, acts as their advocate with the Veterans Administration (VA) concerning their entitlements to medical and educational benefits.

Mel Kloor served over 20 years in the Army and retired as a Major (P). The “P” designator signifies the fact that he was selected to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, but elected to take an early retirement in order to take care of his terminally ill mother. Mel served in various assignments and in various capacities, mostly in the field of Military Intelligence. He served as a Counterintelligence Agent, Counterintelligence Officer, Human Intelligence Officer and Civil Affairs Officer. He has participated in military operations in Vietnam, Panama, Grenada, and most recently, in Iraq as a Department of Defense Special Advisor in support of OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM. Mel was also assigned to the University of Nebraska’s ROTC Department for a period of 4 years as an Assistant Professor of Military Science.

Mel graduated from West Babylon High School in 1959. He holds two Bachelors Degrees (History & Anthropology) and a Masters Degree (History) from Stony Brook University and was declared a Ph.D. candidate by the Graduate History Department, Stony Brook University. Mel, as a college undergraduate, also completed all of the educational and student teaching requirements for New York State Certification in Secondary Education and briefly taught high school on Long Island before deciding on a career in the U.S. Army.

Since Mel’s induction into the West Babylon Alumni Hall of Fame in 2011 he has accepted a position as a Senior Intelligence Instructor, training developer and training facilitator at the FBI Academy, Quantico, VA.