2nd Lieutenant Douglas L. Thierer was a graduate of USAF Undergraduate Pilot Training, Class 72-09, Vance AFB, Enid Ok. Upon graduation, he received an assignment to fly Special Operations MC-130 aircraft in the South East Asia theater of operations during the Viet Nam War. His life and aviation career ended prematurely and tragically with an accident while on a training mission in December of 1972, prior to deployment . As a young man, Doug grew up and worked on his family's farm. Often, as he worked in the fields, he would look up and see formations of F-84's flown by the Illinois National Guard operating from a nearby airport. It was this that inspired Doug to trade his expected future as a farmer, for a career in military aviation. In so doing, Doug and his young family had to overcome obstacles and hardships to achieve his dream, which he did in June of 1971, when he was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant, and immediately assigned to pilot training. During the intense year of training, when others might be discouraged, Doug was invariably cheerful and inspirational to his fellow classmates. "Any day you can fly is a good day!", he was often heard to say. His legacy continues in the memories of those of us who, fortunate to have the life he dreamed of, take him aloft with us every time we fly. Any day you can fly is a good day! Godspeed, Doug.