Rory Berke

Rory Berke is the Chairman of The Board of Shields & Stripes.

A veteran of the U.S. Navy, Rory served in various leadership roles during a 24-year career including multiple tours supporting U.S. and partner nation Special Operations Forces (SOF) around the world. He retired from military service in 2020 and transitioned into private industry where he began working on new technologies at Apple. In 2022, he moved to Meta Reality Labs, where he is helping to build the next generation of AR/VR products.

In the military, Rory was a Naval Flight Officer and an Intelligence Officer. He served in multiple operational tours and taught at the Naval Academy. He later served as the U.S. Naval Attaché to Finland, before returning to support SOF in his final two tours; one as the Director of Intelligence for Naval Special Warfare Group Two and the other in support of US Special Operations Command Africa.

Rory graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy, holds master’s degrees in international relations from Troy University, global leadership from the University of San Diego, and has an MBA from the University of Oxford.

For Rory, serving Shields & Stripes is foundational to his commitment to our veterans, first responders and law enforcement communities. During the early days of the war in Afghanistan, Rory served alongside members of the US Air Force Special Warfare Pararescue (PJ) community.

While mourning the loss of one of their heroes, Rory pledged to honor them through his own military service and, eventually, community programs. And, with a brother who served a career in law enforcement and a mother who served as a first responder, Rory wants to do all he can to help members of these communities receive the support they need as they adapt to life after service.