Journal-News.com

FAIRFIELD — In 2005, Katy Hines' life changed.

On Father's Day that year, her husband, Army Pfc. Timothy Hines, was wounded while a bomb exploded in front of a building as his three-vehicle convoy past it. A month later, on July 14, at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., the 2002 Cincinnati Christian graduate died. He was 21.

"It's changed me as a person," Hines said. "You come to realize what the real important things are in life. Sometimes you wish you can turn back time and change things but you have to know everything happens for a reason."

In the past two-and-a-half years since her husband was buried at Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati, for the mother of two — Lily, 5, and Noah, 2 — that reason has been to help others as her husband would have wanted. Because of an anonymous donor, the Pfc. Timothy Hines Memorial Scholarship for Cincinnati Christian graduates was formed.

"I can turn around and help other people who are in a similar situation," Hines said. "You have to have a situation become personal to you to have an effect on other people."

Just a couple months before Tim Hines died, Marine Lance Cpl. Taylor Prazynski was killed in battle on May 9. He was in Iraq fewer than five months before he was fatally wounded by shrapnel during heavy combat. The 2003 Fairfield High School graduate was 20 years old.

Claudia Pierce, his mother, remembers the knock on her door when she was told her son died in battle.

"When I hear another Marine or soldier dies, my mind goes back to the knock I got, just after midnight (on May 10)," Pierce said. "I shed a tear for him at least once every day. I talk about things he used to do, things he'd say like he's still here."

Prazynski's father, John, has met a number of people — from officials with the Carolina Hurricanes to the Pentagon chaplain. He's also competed in a marathon to honor his son and has visited military men and women. It's all bittersweet, Prazynski said.

"That type of thing I don't think will ever get easy," Prazynski said.

Hines, Prazynski and Pierce support the troops and want to them to get everything they need to complete the job.

"I've been empathetic of the families of the men and women over there and for the men and women over there because I saw how much Tim went through over there, how much he changed as a person from being over there," Hines said.

Contact this reporter at (513) 755-5112 or mpitman@coxohio.com.