A passion for aviation and a goal to make the most out ... - Sun 'n Fun

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A passion for aviation
and a goal to make
the most out of life
By TAMMy SEREBRIN
Atall attractive blond with shoulder length hair, dressed in a
stylish navy blue suit and matching suede high heeled shoes,
met me in the parking lot of the administrative offices of
Sun ‘n Fun (a 501c3 non-profit organization) where she is the new
Director of Business Development. We went into her office, sat down
for the interview and I was immediately blown away. Stacie Rine,
age 37, wife of Neil Rine whom she met in 2004 and married in
2005 – it was “love at first sight,” and mother of Justin and Megan
– born 14 months apart, has lived many lives. Raised in Beaufort,
South Carolina, Stacie was eight years old when she and her family
suffered a great loss. Her sixteen-year-old brother was killed in a
motorcycle accident. Then and there, she took on the role of the
“son” in the family. She began to help her father who built and flew
single engine planes. He brought Stacie to Sun ‘n Fun for the first
time in 1983 where she discovered her own enthusiasm for flying.
Graduating from high school at age 16 and with a congressional
nomination from Senator Hollings of South Carolina, she entered the
United States Naval Academy. She expressed that she was worried
about getting the nomination because she grew up in a middle
class family without “connections.” “I did not grow up with a silver
spoon in my mouth,” she stressed. Flying and the Navy are in her
blood. Her father obtained his private pilot’s license after serving
in the Navy and her mother worked for New York Airways and
American Airlines. Eleven hundred were accepted into her freshman
class out of 14,000 applications, only 10% females. Graduating
in 1995 with a degree in English curriculum, she joined the Navy
and was the only woman and female officer in her flight school
class. She carried weapons, was a mission commander, a functional
check flight pilot, and is a multi-engine advanced instructor pilot.
Moving to Jacksonville to do a tour on the U.S.S. John F. Kennedy
aircraft carrier, she was deployed to the Persian Gulf – three times
as a mission and plane commander and as an instructor pilot for her
fourth and final deployment. She has logged more than 2,000 hours
in military and civilian aircraft.
Stacie met her husband, who was a Lieutenant Commander and
Admiral’s aide, when she returned from deployment. Her intention
after marrying and having her two children was to go back to flying
– she was set up for a 20 year career. Neil was willing to stay home.
But then she said, “I came to my senses.” She and Neil took a class
called “Growing Kids God’s Way” which changed her whole way
of thinking about motherhood and the need to be there for her
kids. She left the Navy in 2008 as a Lieutenant Commander. Living
in Jacksonville with her two young children and Neil deployed on
the Navy’s newest destroyer; she bought the rights to two Massage
Heights franchises. The stresses of her military work had caused

Stacie and Neil with their children Megan and Justin
her to continually seek relaxing therapeutic massages. She has long
believed that people need to incorporate rejuvenating massage into
a healthy life style. When her husband retired from the Navy in 2010,
the Rines were certain he would find employment in Jacksonville; but
instead, he got a job in Winter Haven as a utilities analyst for Polk
County. He moved; she put her businesses up for sale and in March
2011, she started looking for work in Polk County. She applied for
the open CEO position at Sun ‘n Fun. She did not get hired for that
but was offered the position of Director of Business Development.
Sun ‘n Fun President John Leenhouts said in an article for General
Aviation News, that “If I could have written a description for the
type of person we were looking for to fill this position, it would
describe Stacie Rine. She is ideally suited to meet the challenges of
what we’re trying to accomplish.”
She is passionate when she says that when her brother died she
“saw the fragility of life” and has “the deep-seated belief that you
must make the most of it; don’t wait for another chance.” She has
a very close knit family which draws energy from each other.
Never ones to stop learning, Stacie and Neil are both currently
studying for MBA degrees. As to her job at Sun ‘n Fun and living in
Lakeland, Stacie says she “couldn’t be happier. I have found a home
in Lakeland. I am blessed. I get to go to events and convey to businesses
and people the family friendly fun that Sun ‘n Fun offers all
year round.” She just taught a “Wings and Things” course for Eagle
Scouts and loved it. She says, “I am passionate about aviation and
plan to put that energy to work at Sun ‘n Fun.”
December 2011 | INSIDE POLK 21