Before his first deployment to Iraq in 2005, then soldier and now Kraken senior director of technology operations, Sean Rawlins, called a long-time friend from middle school, Marissa, simply to connect and hear her voice.

“I was talking to people in my life, I’m getting ready to go,” said Rawlins during a heartfelt conversation this past week. “Marissa [in her car] said ‘hang on one second, let me put my friend on the phone, I’ve got to run into the bank real quick.’ ”

Rawlins talked to his friend, Carrie, about the pending deployment. Fittingly enough, he sensed an emotional connection (“wow” was on repeat in his mind) over the wireless network and didn’t hesitate.

“I asked, can I have your phone number?” said Rawlins, getting a yes. “We just kept talking and once I got back to Fort Lewis and was home [after his first of two tours in Iraq], we caught up.”

These days? Carrie and Sean Rawlins are happily married with four kids ranging from one-year-old Avery (his birthday was Saturday) to five (Amelia) to eight (Aiden) to 10 (Alex). All “A’s” – exactly the grade Rawlins has earned among Kraken colleagues for his brand of leadership. The leader, father, and man he’s become manifested during his 10 years in the U.S. Army. The couple’s three older children, by the way, all play youth hockey at Kraken Community Iceplex.

As the team prepares for Tuesday’s Military Appreciation Night in a home game versus Columbus, it’s a distinct honor spotlighting Rawlins to personify the active-duty men and women, plus veterans, alive or passed, we all hold near and dear in our lives.

Personal Quest Leads to Professional Success

For Rawlins, his journey to serving America and earning the rank of Sergeant (E-5) started with early memories of his father, who was an Air Force mechanic who “was kind out of the picture” after age five. In high school, Rawlins “always knew my dad was in the Air Force” and “‘Top Gun’ was my favorite movie.” That led Rawlins to dream about becoming a pilot.

“I ended up talking to recruiters and thinking this is the direction that I want to go,” said Rawlins, who enlisted at 18 with high school finished. “It changed my life. I thought I’d go to college while I’m in the military.”

Rawlins’ grandmother, Joyce Trader, who played a big part in raising him and knew the value of education, supported his decision and inspired him to eventually pursue post-secondary pursuits. She was supremely qualified as the first-ever African-American female student to earn a master’s degree in business administration at the University of Washington (another tie-in to UW coming in a bit).

Rawlins yearned to become a military police officer but, in a life-transforming development, there were no open spots for recruiters. He accepted the alternative of becoming a communications specialist who subsequently covered all manner of communications methods and equipment, maintaining secret security clearance with the U.S. government.

Some of those interactions included assuring secure signal support systems for soldiers in battle, laying telecommunication network cabling in active war zones, and providing 24/7 support for U.S. military operations in his two tours in Iraq.

“I joined the Signal Corps, which covered computers, radios, any form of technology really, when there were no military police spots,” said Rawlins. “My reaction was, ‘I guess I’ll do that.’ I’ve been doing that ever since.”

“Doing it ever since” led to his current role overseeing all technology operations for the Kraken after first working for the University of Washington in the athletic department’s IT group. In fact, Rawlins still works home games and travels with the UW football team to manage the vital headset communications used by coaches, plus quarterbacks and designated defensive players on the field.

That arrangement started when Rawlins was on the sidelines at a home game when head equipment manager Bart Fullmer was stymied and looking deeply haired. Rawlins asked if there was anything he might be able to do in support. Bart answered, “Not unless you know anything about radios,” which of course Rawlins did. The former sergeant addressed the issue and the football team has since insisted his presence at all games. When hired by the Kraken, the UW game days arrangement was recognized and has been honored.

Three Tours Overseas

Rawlins’ first tour in Asia was actually in South Korea, where he served alongside soldiers from the KATUSA (Korean Augmentation to the U.S. Army) Solider Program established in 1950 to supplement American fighting forces with Republic of Korea (ROK) soldiers just after the outbreak of the Korean War. It has remained in place to allow for training of ROK soldiers not otherwise readily available and a shared motto is Katchi Kapshida, which means “We go together!”

“The Army doesn’t do this anywhere else,” said Rawlins. “I was in a room that was probably meant to fit two people, but three of us were in there. My two roommates were Korean soldiers and ROC soldiers. It was an amazing experience. My roommates were really interested in sharing their culture with me. And you could say my first job was with military police since I supported the police force for the main military base in Seoul.”

A Dream Diverted

During his second tour in Iraq, Rawlins, now a sergeant, worked a similar role but with a primary difference. This time he was supporting an aviation unit that included Black Hawk and Kiowa helicopters. He sought out pilots about their path to flying and was challenged by one particular pilot who said, “If you are going to do it, stop asking, just shut up and do it!”

“When he told that to me, I thought, Yeah, okay, let me do it,” said Rawlins, who went on to qualify for warrant officer candidate school, the first step to becoming a helicopter pilot.

But soon following that achievement, one of Rawlins’ ankles swelled in Kuwait, a stop on his way back to the U.S. Once home to begin the warrant officer pursuit, the other ankle swelled up. Then an elbow swelled up, subsequently prompting Rawlins to visit a civilian doctor who diagnosed reactive arthritis, a type of autoimmune disease in which the body misguidedly attacks healthy cells. Rawlins gave his best effort at warrant officer training school but couldn’t complete the physical tasks required for helicopter pilots.

The Army vowed to hold his spot for two years to see if Rawlins could tame the disease. After steroidal medications and other drugs did not reverse the disease, a new injectable medication did provide significant relief. But there was a catch. His condition did not allow for him to thrive in “austere environments” where access to clean water, electricity, and medical facilities are limited or denied per conditions of combat. It was time to separate from the military.

First UW, Then Hockey History

The process of getting medically separated from the Army took about six months. Rawlins admits to “being pretty heartbroken,” thinking he would serve 30 years or more. He wanted to find civilian work as soon as possible, but his wife and grandmother both successfully insisted he attend college. It didn’t completely click for him, leading to Rawlins “applying at 100 places” via a resume with impressive communications technology experience.

“Nobody was calling me back,” said Rawlins. “I applied for a job at UW but didn’t hear back. About six months later, discouraged and wanting to quit, someone from UW called to set up a phone interview. I said, ‘Sure, sign me up.’ “

Rawlins had to look up the UW job description and he realized his job skills and experience didn’t match what the university was seeking. He weathered most of the interview, but late in the call he came clean, saying, “To be honest, I don’t know a lot of the duties on this job description and I’m not sure if I can perform them.”

A life-changing pivot for both Rawlins and all of us with the Kraken who love and appreciate Sean came next: The UW interviewer, Erik Jones, who later became vice president of technology for the Kraken franchise in early seasons and recruited Rawlins to join him, asked, “What if I gave you a job and made a new job with your skills in mind?”

Rawlins said yes on the spot, starting on the UW athletic department IT help desk (serving 22 teams) and getting promoted twice to bigger roles in short order. The Kraken senior director has made it a point to pay it forward, hiring two veterans at UW and another to fill a role in his group with the hockey franchise, plus making sure other qualified veterans were interviewed. Rawlins moved to a lead role in tech operations when Jones left to become vice president of technology for the NFL Arizona Cardinals.

“Erik said, ‘Everything we would do was going to be a moment in history,’ said Rawlins. “He was right and here I am.”