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Tim Raynor Get Busy Livin or Get Busy Dyin a keepsake from Memoir for Me

Tim This book is a small token of our family s appreciation for the friendship and respect that we have with and for you and your family Who knew that a road trip that you took in 1987 from Lawrence Kansas to South Bend Indiana would lead to more than 25 years of great memories together Congrats on your retirement from the USMC and good luck in your next chapter Pete Walsh

Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world But the Marines don t have that problem President Ronald Reagan 1985

x It was 1995 and Timothy Alan Raynor just arrived home from his first tour of duty overseas He had a picturesque home in Beaufort South Carolina a lovely wife but he had been home only five months over the past three years Instead of enjoying his house built right on Battery Creek he was living on an aircraft carrier in the middle of the Persian Gulf flying contingency missions over Serbia Slobodan Milo evi was in power and allegedly doing little to prevent horrible acts of genocide in Bosnia Croatia and Kosovo His return back to quiet suburban life was difficult and the time away had taken a toll on their marriage The couple separated in 1997 I was 28 and already married and divorced I planned to stay single fly F 18s and have a blast But fate had another plan 5

x Tim was born March 23 1968 He was the youngest of four with brother Billy and two sisters Mary and Kelly to look up to His parents William Bill and Fran moved the family around quite a lot due to Bill s job as an FBI agent In the course of a few years the Raynor family moved from Des Moines Iowa to Dolton on the Southside of Chicago to Beaumont Texas My parents hated Texas It was so hot They always wanted to return to Kansas where they were both born and raised In 1973 the family did just that moving to Overland Park Kansas Tim was five years old and happy to plant some roots He fell into a gang of boys that loved to play outdoors Jim Smith Steve Neus Neustaedter Tommy Mitchell and Tyler Benson I lived right across the street from Nallwood Middle School which was totally awesome We got into all kinds of trouble there They played war in a nearby creek and ran around all day until being called home for supper As he grew older Tim came to appreciate some unique perks thanks to his father s job My dad had a police scanner in his car and we could tune it into the air traffic and listen to the pilots talking at Richards Gebauer or Johnson County Executive Airport Tim s fascination with flying was further stoked by annual trips with his dad to the local air show where he saw the Blue Angels and the Thunderbirds perform He was fascinated with the pilots who would stand next to their aircraft in their flight suits and take the time to talk to the young boy about flying While Tim wasn t the greatest student growing up he was involved in sports and played baseball and football all through high school He loved these years and has remained close friends with the original group of friends from childhood 6 At an airshow with Special Agent Tony Betts FBI 1978 First Navy Marine Corps aircraft 1991

Tim with his dad at NYC Fleet Week 1995 In 1986 Tim graduated from Shawnee Mission South High School and left for Kansas University He had a great time in college joining Phi Gama Delta Fiji and made friends effortlessly But it wasn t just fun and games Tim knew early on he had to figure out what he was going to do with his life With somewhat lackluster grades he needed some serious direction His freshman year he attended a career seminar and was quickly drawn to several different military recruiters there With his love of flying he first spoke with an Air Force representative AF Rep You need a minimum 3 5 GPA and should be studying engineering or a related field Tim Ok we re done here Next it was the Navy Navy Rep Recruits need a minimum 3 0 GPA and should be studying math or engineering Tim Well that s a bummer Not for me Then it was the Marines Unlike the others the recruiter was young approachable and really exited young Tim I remember thinking he looked really sharp in his uniform 7

And thankfully for Tim the exchange went like this Marine Rep You need a 2 0 GPA and we can give you a guaranteed flight contract Tim Where do I sign up Rep It s physically demanding Tim No problem The next day Tim took the physical and aptitude tests and passed with flying colors The next time he spoke with a recruiter he was invited to officer camp that summer That first summer of officer camp Tim was only 18 and all his frat brothers bet him a keg of beer he wouldn t make it through That gave me motivation to finish It was like hell week but for 6 weeks Coming out of it however Tim had a new perspective on life I came home that summer and it was like suddenly I was handed a compass It was never a question in my mind I was going to become a Marine His parents Bill and Fran were completely supportive Bill had served in the Navy and was able to put himself through college thanks to the military They were also comforted by the fact that the U S was a nation at peace in 1987 Unfortunately that would change Tim with his crew in Afghanistan 2010

Tim Hayley Cooper and Robin 1988 Tim Tyler Neus and Jimbo in 2000 x To pick up some extra money and eat for free while in college Tim worked as the dishwasher at the Chi Omega house on campus It was here that Tim first met a very special girl Cooper Waterman She was a year younger and currently going through Pledge Week at the sorority when they were first introduced by Patty Kelly a mutual friend from Kansas City I just remember thinking god she s gorgeous They attended a dance the very night they met and dated for more than a year In his junior year Tim decided to call things off with Cooper I felt I was too young to be so serious and thought maybe I should date other girls Cooper will tell you that I broke her heart and I did A couple months later Tim tried to patch things up with Cooper but she had moved on and was dating someone else He was now knee deep in military prep Once he graduated from Kansas he d be off to Quantico Virginia for boot camp He graduated in May of 1990 and then packed his car to the gills for Quantico For the next six months Tim attended Basics School where young men and women learned everything there is to know about what it is to be a Marine covering tanks artillery ballistics computer science and infantry And because Tim had a flight contract there was additional flight training in Pensacola Florida that followed During this time he had started dating Jenny Davis a girl from his hometown at the time They dated long distance for years then got married in 1993 The couple moved from Florida to Texas so Tim could finish his flight training From Texas they moved to Jacksonville Florida where Tim learned to fly and land F18s on an aircraft carrier Then the young couple moved to South Carolina to buy that picturesque house 9

Soon after things fell apart Looking back it was a blessing in disguise In 1997 between two deployments Tim had the rare opportunity to get together with some of his friends from childhood They all gathered at Jim Smith s house in Minneapolis where the beer and stories flowed The mood drastically shifted when Neus asked Tim if he d heard from Cooper Waterman So we got drunk and called her Well actually Neus called her mom I could still remember her parents number and dialed for him Neus and Robin Waterman talked for an hour and a half She grilled him for details on how Tim was doing and what he was up to now They hung up and Robin called her daughter Robin got her voicemail and left her an urgent message Cooper you have to call me The next day Cooper spoke to her mom got the lowdown on Tim and couldn t believe the coincidence That same night Cooper had a dream about Tim She dreamed he was divorced Cooper s mom urged her on that it was a sign from God They were destined to get back together And that s the honest to god truth Neus and the rest of the guys kept urging Tim to call her But Tim didn t want to just pick up the phone Surely that would seem too flippant after a heartbreak and subsequent years of separation So instead he wrote her a letter I told her what I d been up to and said if I don t hear back from you I ll know this wasn t the right thing to do It was 1997 and Tim was preparing for another deployment He was stationed in an aircraft hangar in Beaufort South Carolina Time was running out before he was overseas again 10 Tim with the crew of Tricky British RAF CH 47 that provided medevac missions for Marines in Afghanistan in 2010 Tim in the cockpit of a British Apache helicopter in Afghanistan 2010

USS American Tim s home for 9 months in 1995 1996 One day a young Marine came up to me and asked if my name was Tim He had seen a letter in the trash addressed to a Tim Raynor The letter was all distorted but I could see it was from a Waterman in Chicago Cooper had written Tim back right away The letter had been sitting in a trashcan in the hangar for nearly a week It was three pages and I remember my heart was beating so fast The very next chance I could I picked up the phone and called her We ended up speaking for two hours After years apart they couldn t deny that the universe seemed to be pushing them back together They met for a weekend in Atlanta and had a great time reconnecting I d be lying if I didn t say that I fell right back in love with her But there were some roadblocks She was dating someone else back in Chicago Tim was headed to the Persian Gulf to enforce a no fly zone over Iraq Saddam Hussein was quickly becoming a world threat and allegedly amassing a stockpile of weapons of mass destruction Tim and his troop would be policing the skies watching for enemy aircraft and scouting the ground for missiles built to shoot down NATO aircraft 11

During this chaotic period Tim and Cooper couldn t see each other and rarely even spoke on the phone Thankfully both took advantage of the new technology breakthrough that was email In emails to her Tim made it clear he wanted to see her again His ship was due to stop in Marseilles France over Christmas and Tim went out on a limb and bought Cooper a plane ticket to meet him there But as tensions in the Middle East escalated the stop was cancelled It was during this same deployment that Tim s boss and close mentor Lt Col Henry Rip VanWinkle and a very close friend Major Cary Moto collided while flying their F 18s in the Persian Gulf Moto ejected safely and survived but Rip was killed instantly Rip left behind a wife and 2 little boys It was a horrible tragedy and left it s mark on Tim A lot of people had lost loved ones A lot of people had seen worse But I couldn t remember what it was like to live in one place I decided then and there that I had to get out Tim with the officers and pilots of VMFA 251 aboard the USS George Washington their home for 9 months in 1997 1998

Tim and Cooper s wedding May 29 1999 x Life was already headed in a better direction now that Cooper broke it off with her old boyfriend and was exclusively seeing Tim in 1997 Tim returned from the Persian Gulf in 1998 The transition from military to civilian life wasn t as easy as Tim had hoped The traumatic experiences from the past six months haunted him It took awhile to feel normal again I relied a lot on my faith and those around me to get through it That and a whole lot of running I would go on a jog for 10 miles just to clear my mind His closest Marine friend was Tom Sims He was in a very similar boat Tom had always been my more stable friend He was a Midwest kid like me and he saw some buddies die like me Tom and his wife Dede had three kids at the time and were a great example to me of a solid military marriage He was the one encouraging me to pursue Cooper He said Dude you need to marry her Tim knew he couldn t lose her again So in spring of 1998 he asked her to marry him and she said yes They moved into a condo together in the Ravenswood neighborhood of Chicago 13

Both Tim and Tom Sims decided to apply to commercial airlines as a way to a more stable life They both loved to fly In December of 1998 Tim interviewed for a copilot job with American Airlines He got the job in February of 1999 He was based out of O Hare airport in Chicago But Tim wasn t willing to hang up his combat boots just yet With Cooper s blessing he remained in the Marine reserves while also working for American This involved flying 727s and 737s for American while also flying F18s three to four times a month out of Andrews Air Force in Washington DC The next few years brought a move out to the suburbs of Barrington and children into the family Max came along in 2001 and Riley in 2005 The family thought they were complete when Cooper discovered she was pregnant with Abby who joined the family in 2006 In the middle of all this life changed for all Americans on September 11 2001 Tim was in St Louis with American Airlines where he was learning to fly the 767 when the Twin Towers were hit Tim with his squadron mates from VMFA 321 at the Andrews Air Force Base USMC Birthday Ball 14

Tim s first weekend back home 2010 I knew one of the pilots Tom McGuinness who was on Flight 77 At that moment I was so pissed off I wanted to go back right then Tim was working double duty with American Airlines and the Marine and Air Force reserves until 2007 During this time Tim was flying all over the world first with F18s out of Washington D C to A10 warthogs out of Battle Creek MI to finally a desk job at the Great Lakes Naval Base only 30 miles from their home in Barrington Illinois Finally after years living on aircraft carriers or flying all over the country life had become more convenient But at this point the U S had been at war for years In 2009 he couldn t take it any longer I couldn t look myself in the mirror I saw many of my bros go back and I asked Cooper I said I won t go if you don t approve Cooper agreed and Tim took a one year leave of absence from American Airlines With little ones and a stable family life in Barrington this was no small decision He was deployed to Afghanistan for six months in 2010 He was on the ground in the middle of active combat for most of it He counts himself lucky to have come back with ten fingers and ten toes 15

x Tim retired from the Marines in June 2015 He served for 29 years It s bittersweet but I m ready My life has been incredible Without the Marine Corps I wouldn t be the man I am today His deployment in 2010 was his last Since then his work with the Marines has been in a teaching role most recently commanding a reserve unit of 34 aviators The team was put in exercises all over the world representing the finest of the Marine Corps There s this misconception that Marines are heartless killing machines But all the ones I ve known are sensitive guys They love their families They love their country He still works for American Airlines and flies the minimum amount of hours two flights a month to keep his pilot license current His real work with the airline has been in a unique position tailor fit for Tim Now that he was in the Marine reserves Tim wanted a way to give back to his fellow veterans especially those whose lives would be forever changed because of injuries of war He met Pete Walsh in 2007 and was introduced to a unique veterans nonprofit Sentinels of Freedom The Sentinel s mission is to help recently wounded veterans transition back to civilian life Pete s friendship has shown me that there are people out there want to give without asking for anything in return He is one of my best friends and someone I always look up to and want to follow I d do anything for him Tim and Pete worked together on many projects for the Sentinels Tim was able to use his airline connections to greatly benefit the foundation I went to American and said You re the biggest carrier in the world I 16 Tom Sims Tim Eric Christiansen and Brian Parnell 1997 Tim and Tom Sims in Terre Haute Indiana 2001

Tim with the pilots of VMFA 251 aboard the USS George Washington in the Persian Gulf 1998 know you can help this organization out The airline responded with 40 free airline tickets anywhere in the world for these special veterans to see medical specialists help families relocate whatever might be needed Through this Sentinel s work Tim met Captain Jim Palmershein who ran a unique branch within the American Airline s Community Relations group called Veterans Initiatives In 2011 right after his last tour in Afghanistan a position opened up Captain Jim knew just whom to call In this role Tim has done some amazing things Their group has helped to build smart homes for men who have lost limbs in the war including many double and triple amputees Tim has arranged speaking engagements for young men and women featuring National Metal of Honor recipients He s partnered with the Sentinels of Freedom the USO and Snowball Express to create once in a lifetime experiences for these men and women who have dedicated their life for their country With Snowball Express we chartered ten planes to Dallas for four days right before Christmas We bought them tickets to Dallas 17

Mavericks games and just rolled out the red carpet for them Working with the USO Tim took wounded veterans out of Walter Reed Veterans Hospital to send them to Vegas and again rolled out the red carpet Participants enjoyed helicopter rides dinners and shows All of this Tim says has helped him make peace with the clash between the comforts of civilian life and horrible things experienced during combat It has made me aware that somebody s always got it worse than you do I m so blessed I ve got an incredible wife kids family friends and brothers In addition to this great work with AA Veterans Initiatives Tim also has the rare opportunity to move into the captain s seat Airline captain positions are few and far between and run completely based on seniority Captains have to retire before new ones can take their places Finally after 17 years in the copilot chair Tim recently had the chance to train to become a captain He has spent the last seven weeks in captain training learning how to handle being in charge of all decisions that goes on within the cockpit That translates to 9 45am 10 30pm days immersed in simulator training You never become a pilot to sit in the right hand seat The ultimate goal is always to become a captain It looks like things are looking up for the now retired Marine Colonel Tim Raynor But Captain Tim Raynor has many years left in him and something tells me he won t waste a minute of it Tim and his Marine buddies in front of the A 4 Skyhawk 1993 18 Tim and Cooper USMC Ball 2009