(Petty Officer 1st Class K.P. El-Amin stands second from the left)
By: Petty Officer 2nd Class Cynthia Oldham
Throughout his more than two decades serving in the military, first in the Army, then the Coast Guard, K.P. El-Amin’s passion to help people has been mirrored in his personal life.
El-Amin, a first class petty officer at Coast Guard Base Boston's medical clinic, helps Coast Guard members manage their medical care and stay service ready. El-Amin is the outpatient department supervisor whose pursuit to help people extends far beyond aiding his Coast Guard shipmates.
El-Amin volunteered for the first time at a battered women’s shelter when he was at his first Coast Guard unit, Station Erie, in Pennsylvania.
“When we went to that shelter, it hit home. It was then I wanted – No, I needed – to volunteer more,” he said.
El-Amin did a lot more. In his off-duty time, he estimates he has participated in more than 170 charity events, volunteered at soup kitchens every Thanksgiving since 1997, and continually looks for what he can do next.
“I want to raise awareness, to help kids and their families by just showing up and putting smiles on their faces,” El-Amin said.
El-Amin passionately encourages his shipmates to show up, too.
Chief Petty Officer Joshua Mazon, who works with El-Amin at the clinic, said El-Amin serves as a role model who is always encouraging the clinic staff to volunteer in their communities.
Mazon went with El-Amin to visit a little boy named Levi and deliver him Coast Guard toys and lots of well wishes.
Levi, a boy from New Hampshire, underwent an 18-hour surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation treatments to fight a cancerous brain tumor.
“Little Levi was a boy who spent his 10th birthday in the hospital,” said El-Amin. “Visiting him hit me hard, made me feel like what I do matters. I think being there, being an arm of support for the parents, means the world.”
Most of the events he volunteers for are charity motorcycle rides, but El-Amin has volunteered for many organizations over the years, including: Wounded Warrior Project, Cape Cod Cares for Our Troops, Seeing Pink for Breast Cancer Awareness, Cops for Kids with Cancer, and Toys for Tots. Almost every weekend El-Amin gives his time to an event, and he doesn’t believe his time could be spent a better way.
“There are so many reasons to volunteer,” said El-Amin. “Volunteering has made me a better father, and I get a lot of support from my wife who attends every event with me. I believe in family first, not just my family but all families.”
Most recently, El-Amin participated in the 2015 New England Ride for Kids to support the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation. The national motorcycle event raised more than $42,000 for childhood brain tumor research.
As he usually does, El-Amin was there for the ride wearing his black, Batman helmet. El-Amin said his helmet is always a hit and helps him achieve his personal goal — to make the kids smile.
After serving six years in the Army, followed by his 17 years in the Coast Guard, El-Amin is looking forward to retirement in the next couple of years.
Despite this, even after he no longer wears a Coast Guard uniform, El-Amin said he will never stop serving — never stop finding smiles.