Presentation Date: May 28, 2015
C. Colin Supko, Commander, United States Navy Reserve
Colin Supko was born at Lake Tahoe, California in July 1976. The United States Naval Academy recruited him to play football; he graduated there in 1999 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics.
He began his active duty service as a Surface Warfare Officer. He made two deployments to South America and the Caribbean from 1999 to 2001. After the tragic events of 9-11, he volunteered for and was selected to attend Naval Special Warfare (SEAL) training.
In January 2002, he attended the SEAL Basic Underwater Demolition School and graduated with class 240. He was deployed twice in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, first as Assistant Platoon Commander and then as Platoon Commander assigned to SEAL Team FIVE.
In 2007, he was assigned to the Naval Special Warfare Command where he acted as the deputy acquisitions and requirements officer for a two-star SEAL Admiral.
In 2008, he was promoted early to Lieutenant Commander and took command of a Task Unit comprised of three SEAL Platoons at SEAL Team SEVEN. In this role, he deployed for a third time to Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.
Commander Supko’s most recent active duty assignment was as the Operations Officer for Special Boat Team Twelve, a 350-man command assigned to Naval Special Warfare Group 4. He is currently the Commanding Officer for all west coast Naval Reserve SEALs at SEAL Team 17.
Highlights of CDR Supko’s most recent deployment include counter-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia and diplomatic assistance operations in support of the United States foreign policy objectives in the country of Yemen.
His military awards and decorations include:
-- Bronze Star Medal with Valor(V) device
-- Three Navy Commendation Medals (one with V device)
-- Navy Achievement Medal
-- Two combat action ribbons
He founded the socially innovative startup company “Zikl.com” focused on bringing transparency to peer-to-peer markets around the globe. He also co-founded the consumer electronics company Munitio.com and the startup E-commerce company Instock.com.
Colin earned a:
-- Master’s of Science degree in Global Leadership and International Business from the University of San Diego in 2011
-- Master’s degree in Business Management from the Stanford Graduate School of Business in 2013.
He has traveled to more than 79 countries. His adventures have included:
-- diving the Blue Hole off the South Pacific island of Guam
-- a climb to the rooftop of Africa summiting Mt. Kilimanjaro in 2010
-- a walk along the Inca Trail to the heights of Machu Picchu where he proposed to his wife.
In 2014 at Lake Tahoe, he was married to Stephanie Barker from Hamden, CT. They currently reside in San Francisco, CA.