Alarm Industry’s Jerry O’Brien Laid to Rest

Photo by Lou Fiore

Former Alarm Industry Communications Committee (AICC) Chair Jerry Michael O’Brien was buried at Arlington National Cemetery on February 29. He passed away in Tampa, FL on August 30.

CSAA Past President and current AICC Chair Lou Fiore and CSAA Counsel Ben Dickens attended the burial service. Last fall, AICC members passed a resolution in honor of O’Brien’s contributions to the alarm industry.

The following is an excerpt from the remarks given by the Chaplain, Captain Scott Foustat, at the service.

“By the time Jerry was 18, he was married, he had enlisted in the Air Force, and he soon would be a parent. Jerry’s dream was to develop, design and launch rockets, but as many of us discover, the needs of the Air Force come first, so Jerry was assigned to become an air traffic controller … not rockets, but a very reputable career path nonetheless. Jerry made the best of it, and he excelled at his job, establishing air traffic control centers all over the world, often in very remote places.

“Jerry was eventually selected for officer training, and he commissioned as an AF Officer, one of the last to do so without a college degree. While in the Air Force, Jerry and his family moved 21 times in 20 years. Jerry’s service spanned the Vietnam War, and he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, among many others.

“Following his military career, Jerry took on various adventures, including managing a motion picture studio, representing an energy conservation business, managing API Security telecommunications, which led him to join Omnipoint-a start-up telecommunications company.

“Jerry will be remembered as a patriot, loyal friend, caring father, and beloved husband. Jerry rarely asked for anything in life (except maybe another cup of coffee), but he did have one request: to be buried at Arlington. It’s an honor for us today to grant that request!”