From Research to Recognition: Honoring Sherman Kinney Jr.
- Laura Kinney-Porter
- 9 hours ago
- 5 min read
For much of my life, I knew that my grandfather, Sherman Kinney Jr., had served in the United States Marine Corps during World War II. What I did not know was the full significance of that service.
As part of my work documenting and preserving my family’s history, I began looking more closely into Sherman’s military record. That research eventually led me to obtain more than 140 pages of his Marine Corps records from the National Archives, including enlistment documents, training and assignment information, personal correspondence, and photographs of Sherman as an 18-year-old Marine.
Those records opened an entirely new part of our family story. I learned that Sherman had been a Montford Point Marine, one of the first Black men admitted into the United States Marine Corps. These men trained at the segregated Montford Point camp in North Carolina and served their country while living under the realities of segregation and discrimination. The more I learned, the more determined I became to make sure Sherman’s service was formally recognized.
From Research to Recognition
My research eventually connected me with the National Montford Point Marine Association and Stanley “Curly” Thompson, Central Region Vice President of the Association. What began as a family-history question grew into nearly a year of documentation, conversations, phone calls, advocacy, and coordination to have Sherman formally vetted and recognized.
At the same time, I was learning more about the life Sherman built after leaving the Marine Corps. He became a businessman, public servant, civic leader, mentor, and advocate for minority-owned businesses. He founded S.K. Janitorial Service, later served as a senior procurement specialist with Ohio’s Office of Minority Business Enterprise during Governor John J. Gilligan’s administration, and worked in equal opportunity and contract compliance for the City of Cincinnati.
Understanding his military history helped me see these later chapters of his life differently. His service as a Montford Point Marine was not an isolated part of his story. It became another piece of understanding the man he was and the life of service he continued to lead after returning home.
Cincinnati City Council Honors Sherman
On August 5, 2026, our family gathered at Cincinnati City Hall as City Council passed and presented a resolution honoring Sherman’s military service and his lifelong contributions to Cincinnati. Councilmember Anna Albi presented the recognition before members of our family, friends, city leaders, and the community.
It was meaningful to see generations of the Kinney family gathered together in one place for Sherman. Much of my preservation work had originally centered on my grandmother, Mattie Bell Kinney, and through the Mattie Legacy Project I have worked to document her civil rights leadership, women’s health advocacy, mentorship, and community service.
Researching my grandfather reminded me that preserving Mattie’s story also means understanding the life and legacy they built together.
Sherman and Mattie’s work took different forms, but they shared a deep commitment to family, community, civic involvement, and creating opportunities for others. Their home at 409 Clinton Springs Avenue became part of that work, serving not only as a family residence but as a place where community organizing, civic conversations, mentorship, and relationships were built.
Bringing the Recognition Home
On August 15, our family gathered again for Hamilton County Veterans Appreciation Day at TQL Stadium. This time, several generations stood together as Sherman was formally recognized as a World War II Montford Point Marine.
Mr. Thompson traveled to Cincinnati to personally make the presentation on behalf of the National Montford Point Marine Association. Our family accepted Sherman’s Congressional Gold Medal, certificate, and a letter from President Barack Obama. Hamilton County commissioners also presented our family with a proclamation recognizing Sherman Kinney Jr. Day.
That moment represented the culmination of months of research and advocacy, but it was also much more personal than that. Sherman’s children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, extended family, and friends were able to stand together and witness a part of his history being formally acknowledged decades after his service.
For me, that was one of the most meaningful parts of the entire process. The work had begun quietly through documents, photographs, archived records, and questions. Now, it had become something our entire family could experience together.
Why This Work Matters
This experience reinforced why I believe family-history preservation matters. Family history is not simply a collection of names and dates. It can change how we understand the people who came before us and, in turn, how we understand ourselves.
Sherman died long before our family fully understood the significance of his service as a Montford Point Marine, but the records, photographs, and history were still there. They gave me a way to recover a story that had never been fully explained to us and to connect that history with the life we already knew he had lived.
That is particularly important within Black families and communities, where so many stories have gone undocumented, unrecognized, or reduced to only one part of a person’s life. Sherman was a Marine, but he was also Mattie’s husband, a father, businessman, public servant, civic leader, mentor, and someone who spent decades working to strengthen his community.
He deserved for the fuller story of his life to be remembered.
The Work Continues
Sherman’s recognition is not where this work ends. There is currently no Cincinnati-area chapter of the National Montford Point Marine Association, and I hope to continue raising awareness of this history locally. I would like to help connect with Marines, veterans, veteran organizations, and families who may be interested in learning more about the Montford Point Marines and exploring what it would take to establish a local chapter.
There may be other Cincinnati-area families who know that a relative served in the Marine Corps but do not yet know whether that service connects them to Montford Point. Our family was in that position not long ago. I hope Sherman’s story encourages others to look more closely at their own records, photographs, and family memories.
For our family, these recognitions gave us something we will carry forward for generations. For me, they reaffirmed exactly why I continue doing this work: to recover what has been overlooked, preserve what remains, and make sure these stories are passed on with the care they deserve.
After nearly a year of research and advocacy, we were finally able to bring this recognition home.
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