It is with deep sadness that we report that our classmate Steve McInerney passed away suddenly on Saturday, July 18th.
“Mac” came to Amherst in the fall of 1978 from McAteer High School in San Francisco. Sporting wide bell bottom corduroy pants, a puka shell necklace and long flowing red hair, he looked like a peace protester from a decade before. It was only a matter of time before someone would nickname him “Groovy.” He went on to become a heroic US Navy aviator, retiring as a Captain after 27 years in a stellar career distinguished by both valor and humility.
For Mac, life was all about adventure, experience, commitment and character. He came to Amherst to see the East Coast. A political science major, he loved to read and learn and had a love of country and determination for a life of service. Gifted with self-effacing wit, Mac could modestly keep a crowd captivated with his analysis and humor in the tradition of an Irish seanchai. A classic example was his explanation for choosing his profession at a career panel during our 25th reunion: “After Amherst, I worked as a bouncer for a few months in Cambridge and then solo backpacked through Europe where I ended up on a kibbutz for six months … and that’s how I became a Navy pilot.”His success as a pilot was helped by his athleticism, eagle eyesight, tremendous eye-hand coordination, and a measured penchant for risk.
While Mac excelled in every stint in his Navy career, he wasn’t concerned about “hitting the wickets” for optimal officer advancement. The Navy needed helicopter pilots during his flight school class, so Mac was assigned to flying CH-46’s based in Guam. But he wanted to fly jets so he requested a return to flight school and started flying EA6’s, the Navy’s electronic warfare jet at the time. The Navy upgraded their electronic platform to F18’s where Mac demonstrated his leadership and technical abilities and was tasked with establishing the training and systems protocols for all of the Navy’s 15 electronic squadrons. Not surprisingly, the Navy continued to assign more demanding command positions, and it was really the last 10 years of his career when Mac served in upper administrative roles where his full value as a leader was realized.
Over the past 30 years, Mac was involved in many of the military engagements that supported US foreign policy, including the opening strikes over Baghdad during Operation Iraqi Freedom and leading an air wing in combat operations in Afghanistan and Iraq. His valor was outdone only by his modesty. Mac never once mentioned to any of us at our annual gatherings that he had earned a Legion of Merit for exceptional meritorious service as CAG (Commander Air Group); not one but two Bronze Stars for valor; multiple other medals for meritorious service; and commendation and achievement awards for outstanding performance. Aside from his individual accomplishments, it was Mac’s moral leadership and example that helped change the Navy air wing culture to become more tolerant, inclusive and ultimately more effective. He was widely hailed by his troops for his leadership style, intelligence and quality of character.
Two incidents stand out that highlight Mac’s humanitarianism. While serving aboard USS Carl Vinson in January 2010 as the Commander, Carrier Air Wing Seventeen, the U.S. Navy responded to the Haiti earthquake in less than eight hours. Mac’s experience in helicopters was instrumental in coordinating the complex disaster response operations with a myriad of diverse organizations. He led the Navy’s response effort as Senior Navy Liaison Officer getting interviewed on CNN for “Operation Unified Response.” The second was observing the proper burial rites for Osama bin Laden on May 3, 2011. As the CAG attached to the USS Vinson, Mac was one of the most senior officers aboard to see that Muslim religious rites were performed followed by burial in the North Arabian Sea within 24 hours of bin Laden’s death.
Offered Admiral rank, Mac declined flag command and retired from the Navy in 2011. The commitment of command and pace of Navy deployments had caused him to miss many things at home, and Mac was determined to make up for lost time with his kids. His greatest joy was to see them grow up to be accomplished and kind. The Navy did come calling a few years later asking him to help lead (in a civilian role) a $2B strategic program to train the Australian Navy in the use and deployment of their EA-18G squadrons. This was a testament to the deep respect the Navy had for his management and performance.
Following his relocation from Washington to Maryland last year, Mac seemed to blossom. He was spending time with his kids, and his work with the Aussies had transitioned into interesting (but manageable) strategic work rather than operational problem solving. And his body had mostly recovered from the physical abuse it had taken as an aviator and 24-hour-a-day leader.
A group of 18 of Mac’s classmates has been sharing a weekly Zoom call to stay connected during this COVID crisis. Mac would usually start his “check-in” for the call by saying he considered himself the “luckiest SOB on the planet.”After the killing of George Floyd, the group started having weekly readings and a discussion on race led by group member (and Amherst Professor) Allen Hart. Mac approached the issue with the same fervor and intensity that characterized his intellectual adventurism, reading all the material and participating in active protest in support of the Black community, consistent with the moral leadership he provided in the Navy. In the weeks prior to his death — on the way home from a mid-day visit with his son Daniel in DC — Mac had participated in a number of Black Lives Matter protests to help make this country a better place.
When catching up with classmates, people often ask us, “With whom do you keep in contact?” We then each typically recite a list, and invariably, when Mac is mentioned, the questioner would smile, remember something about him and say, “So how
is Mac?” Until that fateful day in July, it was wonderful to share that he was doing very well indeed.
PS When posting this, at the bottom it asked me to illustrate the story with a picture or song. I remembered the following email, which Stephen sent me in 2015. I was reporting in from a trip to Italy with friend Dave Horton. I had shared that since Dave had rented the car I would be co-pilot/navigator for the trip. Mac replied:
From: Stephen Mcinerney <spmcinerney@yahoo.com>
Date: Mon, May 25, 2015 at 12:18 PM
Subject: Re: Made it to Saluzzo
Beautiful - and since Horts is driving you get to pick the tunes.
Kings of Leon. All day. Every day.
Sent from my iPhone
So, Kings of Leon it is!