MOAACC Luncheon - Guest Speakers LTC (Ret) Tim Thomas & MSG (Ret) Michael Sonnenschein

      Tim Thomas is the Senior Army Instructor at Viera High School.  He was elected to the Melbourne City Council in November 2016 and was re-elected in 2020.  He is also a member of the Melbourne-Orlando International Airport Authority Board.
     Tim Thomas was born in Quincy, Illinois, but grew up in Pensacola, Florida. He attended Tate High School and played football for legendary coach Carl Madison. Tim graduated from Tate in 1983 and received a football scholarship to Marion Military Institute where he was selected for the Army Early Commissioning Program. Upon his Commissioning in 1985 as a Second Lieutenant, Tim served in the Alabama National Guard with the 20th Group Special Forces and the 117th Field Artillery Battalion while completing his degree at Auburn University in Montgomery (AUM).  He graduated from AUM in 1987 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Government and was selected for Active-Duty service in the United States Army.
     Tim served in the Army for 23 years and held numerous key leadership positions at the Division, Corps and Department of Defense level and served two combat tours in Iraq. He is also one of a few Americans ever allowed access into North Korea. In 1998, Tim and his Search and Recovery Team were allowed into North Korea where they recovered and repatriated the remains of nine Army soldiers who were killed in North Korea during the Korean War.
     In 2002, Tim earned a Master’s of Science degree in Administration through Central Michigan University while attending the United States Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. He retired as a Lieutenant Colonel at Patrick Air Force Base in 2010. Tim’s awards and decorations include the Bronze Star, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal (with 2 OLCs), Army Commendation Medal (with 2 OLCs), Joint Service Achievement Medal, Army Achievement Medal (with 2 OLCs), National Defense Service Medal (with 2 OLCs), Southwest Asia Service Medal (with 3 Stars), Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Korea Defense Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, Kuwait Liberation Medal, Saudi Arabia Liberation Medal, Airborne and Air Assault badges.
     Upon retirement in 2010, Tim was immediately hired by Viera High School to start up an Army JROTC program. Tim is in his 12th year as the Senior Army Instructor at Viera High School with 200 Cadets making it one of the largest JROTC programs in Brevard County. Tim is also very active in the community supporting homeless veterans through Operation Stand Downs and most recently leading the efforts with Viera High School JROTC Cadets as well as Brevard County Veterans in securing passage of the “All American Flag Act” through the Florida State Legislature in 2015.  Tim’s community awards include a 2019 Resolution passed by the Brevard County Commissioners recognizing his heroic efforts in helping save a young man’s life who was suffering from Sudden Cardiac Arrest by performing CPR.  He also received a Central Florida 2019 Humanitarian Award for his efforts with Paul Alfrey and John Casey in setting up the Bahama Relief Missions to bring needed supplies to the Bahamas after Hurricane Dorian.  Lastly, Tim was recognized by the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Coalition and the Florida Tech Alumni Association for his efforts in spearheading the renaming of Airport Blvd to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.  He is a member of the Association of the United States Army, the Military Officers Association of America Cape Canaveral Chapter and was also selected by Senator Marco Rubio to be on his United States Military Academy at West Point selection committee.    His wife, Heather Thomas, is a dual sworn deputy with the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office. They have three children Tommy (28), Savana (25) and Dallas (20). They attend the First Baptist Church of South Brevard in Melbourne.

• MSG (Ret) Michael Sonnenschein is a highly decorated Army Ranger who did combat tours in Panama, the Gulf War and Afghanistan

• Distinguished himself as an exceptional leader and warrior

• Served in some of the most prestigious units in the United States Army to include 3/75 Ranger Regiment, 101^st Airborne, and the 501^st Parachute Infantry Regiment

• Winner of the Best Ranger Competition in 1989

• Last assignment prior to retirement instructor at Florida Institute of Technology training their Ranger Team to back-to-back National Championship Titles in 2008 and 2009

• Helped start the Army JROTC program at Viera HS in 2010

In 2016, Mike and his wife Hope left the United States to become missionaries in the country of Haiti.  On 27 May 2021, Mike and Hope were attacked by a lone gunman on a motorcycle.  Mike sustained serious injuries to his lung and spinal column.  He is recovering from the wound to the lung and was transferred to Shepherd Center and Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation in Atlanta, GA.