Stony Brook Man, 'National And Hometown Hero,' Named 5th Legislative District's Veteran Of the Year

STONY BROOK, NY — Stony Brook resident Hank Lewis was named the 5th Legislative District's Veteran of the Year for 2025 at a recent meeting of the Suffolk County Legislature, Legis. Steve Englebright said.

It's part of a program in which the 18 legislators introduce a veteran from their district, who, in addition to serving their country in the past, continues to give back to the community they live in.

Englebright described Lewis as “a national hero and a hometown hero.”

“We are proud of you and grateful for all of your lifetime of good work to secure and enhance our country, county, and community," he said.

Lewis, a U.S. Army veteran who served from 1966 to 1968, was an MOS 82C20 artillery surveyor who spent a year in Vietnam and achieved the rank of E-5. He was positioned west of Chu Lai Air Base and Da Nang airstrip, and surveyed Viet Cong forces mortaring airstrips. After the Tet Offensive, he was sent to Camp Evans, which was a short distance from the North Vietnamese border, to help guard the base while the road to Khe Sanh was being opened.

Due to a mortar injury during his service in Vietnam, he was awarded the Purple Heart and also received the Vietnam Campaign, Vietnam Service, and Army Commendation medals.

Lewis serves as the commander of East Setauket’s American Legion Harbor Post 417, and has helped raise money for scholarships. On Flag Day, he and his fellow post members distribute flags to elementary schools in the Three Village Central School District.

He is also a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3054, and for the past 13 years, he has been an active member of the Setauket Fire Department, serving as the department’s treasurer.