casualty

PFC Timothy J. Hines, Jr., age 21, of Fairfield, Ohio, was severely wounded 19 June 2005 in Baghdad, Iraq, when an improvised explosive device detonated near his HMMWV, he was a gunner on the vehicle.

Tim passed from our ranks on 14 July 2005 during surgery at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, D.C.

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He was born June 6, 1984 in Killeen, TX, the son of Timothy Hines and Diana (nee Thomas) Hines. Tim was a graduate of Cincinnati Christian High School and a member of the Vineyard Community Church in Cincinnati.

Photograph Courtesy of 64th MP Co. FRG

He is survived by his loving and beloved wife, Katy; daughter, Lily Hines; expected son, Noah Hines, due August 6; mother, Diana Hines; father, Timothy (Joanna) Hines; twin sister, Jenni (Dustin) McGhghy; grandparents, Gene (Florence) Thomas, and Nancy Hines; in-laws, Jim (Kathi) Wessel; sister-in-law, Sara Wessel.

The families of Pfc. Timothy Hines wishes to express our deepest gratitude to our families, friends, and the entire community for their prayers and support. We also wish to thank the medical and support staff at Walter Reed Army Medical Center for the excellent care Tim received and the emotional support they provided to us.

Please continue to pray for the health and well-being of Katy, Lily, Noah and our entire family.

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28 October, 2005
3 Wishes Granted to a Deserving Guardian Wife

Butler County wife and mother who lost her husband in Iraq gets big boost from NBC show
By John Kiesewetter, Enquirer staff writer

It wasn't exactly what young Iraq war widow Katy Hines wanted from NBC's "Three Wishes," but it is what she needed:

A $233,000, four-bedroom home in Liberty Township for her 3-year-old daughter and infant son. Eight rooms of new Thomasville furniture. A four-year full scholarship to Miami University.

"I am blown away. I never, ever would have thought anything like this would ever happen," says Hines, 23, whose husband, Army Pfc. Tim Hines, 21, of Fairfield, died July 14 from injuries suffered in Iraq.

"This doesn't seem real yet," says Hines, seated in her family room holding her son, Noah, who was born a month after his father lost his life.

NBC viewers will see Hines' new house today in a "Three Wishes" episode that provides three new homes for Ohio military veterans and their families. It's a departure from the usual format, in which host Amy Grant makes three dreams come true in a single town.

After producers heard about the heavy casualties from a U.S. Marine unit based in the Cleveland suburb of Brook Park, they decided to do a "homecoming" special for Ohio veterans and "the families of the husbands and soldiers who didn't come home," said Andrew Glassman, a producer.

Tim Hines was not part of the Cleveland unit. He was sent to Iraq in February with the Army's 64th Military Police Company from Fort Hood, Texas. The Mount Healthy native was wounded in a roadside bomb explosion on Father's Day. He earned three service medals - a Purple Heart, Bronze Star and Good Conduct Medal.

Katy Hines and her children Lily, age 3, and Noah, 9 weeks, were given this new home in Liberty Township by NBC's "Three Wishes" TV show. Hines' husband, Tim, died in July from injuries suffered in Iraq. Courtesy of The Enquire, Brandi Stafford

"As soon as we heard about Katy, we stopped looking and directed all our efforts to helping her," says Glassman by phone from his Los Angeles office.

When "Three Wishes" called in August, Hines didn't know that producers were planning to give away houses. So when they asked about dreams to fulfill, the shy, unselfish Hines immediately suggested building athletic fields in honor of her husband at Butler County's Cincinnati Christian School, where they met as students four years ago.

"I didn't exactly want it to be about me and my family. I wanted it to be more for Tim," says Hines, who had been living in her parents' small, three-bedroom Fairfield home since February.
"But this, in a way, is for him as well," she says.

Three months after Tim's death, his young family's future seems somewhat secure. They have a spacious Hawthorne Hills home with a fenced yard, gas grill and trampoline. An anonymous donor - not connected to the TV show - has provided $130,000 for his children's education from kindergarten through high school at Cincinnati Christian School.

Katy Hines will enroll at Miami next fall. Her parents, Jim and Kathi Wessel, will move into the basement and help raise Lily and Noah. Another group, Impact Player Partners, has volunteered to build a basement master suite for the Wessels.

"She deserves it, whether she was bold enough to ask for a house or not, and it was more than a joy to provide it to her," Glassman says.

In tonight's show, viewers will see Hines go house-hunting with "Three Wishes" contributor Eric Stromer on Sept. 30. (They won't show her dad secretly looking at 10 homes with a producer the day before.) She picked the third and final house she toured that Friday. "Three Wishes" promptly bought it the following Monday.

As cameras rolled, Stromer asked Hines how someday she'd like to decorate a house, and what she planned to do with her life. Ten days later, NBC crews returned to shoot Stromer taking Hines again to her dream house - and surprising her with the complete furnishings, and the full ride to Miami.

"I was completely shocked," Hines says. "I would have never been able to paint all of these rooms, or to furnish the house as nice as they did. They listened to what I liked, and what I was hoping for."

Hines wants everyone in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky to know how grateful she is for their outpouring of sympathy and donations to the Timothy Hines Memorial Fund at Fifth Third Bank.

"People have no idea how much all their prayers and support have meant to me and our entire family," she says. "Later on, when my kids get older, I can show them all the hundreds of cards we got and tell them about everything that happened. They'll know how much their dad meant to everybody."

Says her father: "I know she'd trade all this for one more day with Tim, but we are so grateful that her future is a little more settled, and she has a place to raise the kids. So some blessings have come out of this."

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If Pfc. Tim Hines Jr. could have held on for another few weeks, he would have been able see his second child.

The 21-year-old from Fairfield died last week at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., after battling injuries he received in a bomb explosion in Baghdad for almost a month. His grandmother, Florence Thomas, said Friday that his wife, mother and other family members were with him.

More than 400 family members and friends gathered for his funeral Friday in this Cincinnati suburb. They watched a slide show of his life from childhood to high school to his wedding.

Hines met his wife, Katy, at Cincinnati Christian School. They had a 2-year-old daughter, Lily, and Katy expects to give birth to their second child in about two weeks.

“Tim was a fighter. He fought hard for his country, family and ultimately, his life. He was a loyal husband and father and an incredible American,” a tearful Katy Hines said at the funeral. “There is a price for freedom and Tim paid the ultimate price. Now he is in the loving arms of God.”

Family members said Hines was the gunner on a Humvee in a convoy when a bomb detonated on a Baghdad highway on Father’s Day. He suffered kidney and tissue damage and internal bleeding, and his right leg was amputated in a Baghdad hospital. He was having emergency surgery when he died.

“Tim understood the importance of sacrifice,” said Jay Madigan, pastor of St. Paul Crossroads New Hope Church of Eaton.

Army Brig. Gen. Patrick O’Reilly presented Hines’ mother a Purple Heart, a Bronze Star and the Good Conduct Medal. Family members also received a visit from President Bush at the medical center earlier this month.

Hines was buried at Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati with full military honors.

Less than 24 hours later, however, the family’s mourning was interrupted by an incident of vandalism. Fairfield police and fire department investigators were called to the home of Hines’ mother-and father-in-law about 5:30 a.m. Saturday.

A group of American flags that had been lining the lawn were piled under the car of Hines’ sister-in-law, Sara Wessel, and set on fire, police said. The fire spread to the car, which was damaged beyond repair. There were no injuries.

“What has happened to this family is a tragedy; what occurred this morning is despicable,” said Fairfield police Chief Mike Dickey. “We will take every step to identify the persons responsible and hold them accountable.”

Hines’ father-in-law, Jim Wessel, said he believes the fire was a random act of vandalism.

“If it wasn’t random vandalism, what statement were they trying to make?” he said.

By Saturday afternoon, the 20 flags had been replaced by more than 200 given by family, friends and neighbors.

In addition to the acts of kindness from their friends and neighbors, the family also had reason to be grateful to an anonymous donor. The donor gave Cincinnati Christian $130,000 to cover tuition for Hines’ two children last week.

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Pfc. Timothy J. Hines, Jr., United States Army, age 21 of Fairfield passed away at Walter Reed Army Medical Center due to injuries sustained in battle while serving in Iraq.

On June 15, 2002 he married Katy Wessel in Milford. His family describes Tim as a "People Person". He enjoyed spending time with his family and friends and loved basketball. Most importantly however, he had a devoted love of his wife and family, his faith and the country he died for. He is survived by his loving and beloved wife, Katy; daughter, Lily Hines; expected son, Noah Hines, due August 6; mother, Diana Hines; father, Timothy (Joanna) Hines; twin sister, Jenni (Dustin) McGhghy; grandparents, Gene (Florence) Thomas, and Nancy Hines; in-laws, Jim (Kathi) Wessel; sister-in-law, Sara Wessel.

Memorials may be made to the Timothy Hines Memorial Fund c/o any Fifth-Third Bank or to Impact a Hero (impactahero.com). Condolences may be sent by visiting www.avancefuneralhome.com Funeral services will be 10 a.m., Friday, July 22, 2005 at the Vineyard Community Church, 11340 Century Circle East, Cincinnati, OH 45246.

Burial with full military honors will follow at Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati. Visitation will be 6-9 p.m., Thursday July 21, at the church. The Avance Funeral Home & Crematory, Fairfield is serving the family.

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Soldier's widow to help build complex at school
By Michael D. Pittman, Dayton Daily News, Cox News Service

FAIRFIELD | A multi-sport athletic complex at their high school alma mater will be Katy Hines' tribute to her husband.

The widow of Army Pfc. Timothy J. Hines Jr. will help lead the effort to build a multi-million dollar building at Cincinnati Christian School.

"Originally, (the field) was my wish for Three Wishes," Hines said, referring to the NBC show that gave her a new home in Liberty Twp. "I didn't want it to be about me, but I wanted it to be about Tim — for my kids to have a great memory of him. That, to me, was the perfect way to honor him."

Tim Hines died July 14 at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington from injuries suffered nearly a month earlier when his convoy was hit by a roadside bomb in Baghdad. He also is survived by his children, Lily, 2, and Noah, a newborn.

When Tim and Katy Hines attended CCS, the school had no football team. This season is the team's second.

The athletic complex is one of the school's top needs and will cost about $5 million, CCS acting CEO Brian Hitchcock said. The school planned to build it in three to five years on the 20 to 25 acres remaining at the Morris Road site, he said. The complex will accommodate football, soccer, tennis and baseball.

Hines will appear at 9 p.m. Friday on Three Wishes where she and two other military families will be given homes. The segment was filmed in Liberty Twp. on Oct. 10. She is to receive a special surprise, leaving open the possibility that it may be related to the athletic field.

Hitchcock said the name of the complex has yet to be determined, but it will likely be named for all military veterans. He said the football field will likely be named for Tim — Hines Field.

The project, tentatively called the Hines Field project, is in its infancy, Hitchcock said.
"It was real humbling that she thought of the school first," he said.

Those wishing to help with the project can call (513) 892-8500, Ext. 156. Donations can be directed to the Hines Field Memorial Fund at any KeyBank location.

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