Kevin Dupont; had acute sense of duty, humor

Before he graduated from Chicopee High School in 1976, Sergeant Dupont enlisted in the Marine Corps. It was the beginning of a career that would span about 30 years, mostly in the National Guard. It was also the product of a relentless sense of duty, said friends and family.

Sergeant Dupont died Wednesday at the Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, after succumbing to wounds suffered after his Humvee struck a bomb March 8 in Kandau, Afghanistan, said Major James Sahady, spokesman for the Massachusetts National Guard. He was 52 and the 12th member of the Massachusetts Army National Guard to die in operations since Sept. 11.

His friends and family recalled Sergeant Dupont’s sense of humor and integrity, traits he carried with him into his last days. “Five minutes with him and you’re begging to leave the room, because your sides are splitting,’’ said his brother Mark of North Easton. “He was like [comedians George] Carlin . . . Eddie Murphy, and Robin Williams, all on their best day.’’

His brother “aspired to be a soldier; and from out of that, Kevin grew to be one hell of a leader,’’ Mark Dupont said.

After eight years in the Marines, Sergeant Dupont entered the Massachusetts Army National Guard and served full time for 29 years. He fostered relationships that are just as strong now as they were decades ago, his brother said.

“You looked in Kevin’s eyes and you listened to him speak and you immediately trusted him,’’ he said. “He was honest and sincere, and you saw that in his eyes.’’

One of those friends, Sergeant Jim Deyermond of the Massachusetts State Police Tactical Operations unit, attended a sniper training course taught by Sergeant Dupont in the early 1980s. The two became close friends and hunting buddies who later traveled all over New England and Canada on yearly excursions.

Deyermond remembers one trip in particular. “I picture us in the far reaches of Canada, on a hunting trip, in the soaking wet rain, and we met on a trail. And Kevin looked at me, and I looked at him, and he said, ’Fancy meeting you here,’ ’’ Deyermond remembered, with a laugh. “And we’re both soaking wet in the rain, and even then, he had that smile on his face. His sense of timing was flawless.’’

Deyermond said Sergeant Dupont was close to retirement when he volunteered for service in Afghanistan, eager to pass on decades of training to less experienced soldiers. In Afghanistan, he worked closely with Afghan troops, a task for which his patience and understanding were invaluable, his brother said. “It was his quiet negotiation.’’

Sergeant Dupont met his wife, Lisa Murawski-Dupont, in the military. She served in the Army Reserves in Iraq, where she was wounded when her convoy was attacked. She is now an MBTA police officer. “In Kevin’s eyes, she was his hero,’’ said his sister Jodi McVane of Mansfield.

In addition to his wife, brother, and sister, Sergeant Dupont leaves a brother, Christopher, of Belchertown; a sister, Kelli of North Hampton, N.H.; and his parents, Ron and Gwen of Chicopee.

Funeral plans have not been completed.