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Air Force to professor: Stuart Wolthius
A LIFE OF
Stuart Wolthuis shares sacrifices and triumphs of 24 years of service in U.S. Air Force
BY HAILEY HUHANE
After 24 years of active duty service in the United States Air Force, BYU–Hawaii Associate Professor Stuart Wolthuis has acquired an inspiring list of accolades, which includes more than two dozen honors and medals, a bachelor’s of science degree and a master’s of engineering degree in industrial and systems engineering.
Despite the dangers and strife of serving in the military, his family said he cherishes his time in the Air Force.
Of his achievements, Wolthuis’ wife Emily Wolthuis said, “My husband would never say this about himself because he is a very humble man. He was consistently recognized for his outstanding leadership and contributions; in fact, he was Airman of the Year for all fighter bases west of the Mississippi River in 1987 and Company Grade Officer of the Year when he served in Italy. He also led a team that received Vice President Gore’s Hammer Award for saving millions of dollars in acquisition costs on a significant national project. I’m extremely proud of his dedication and commitment in whatever calling, job or responsibility he has.”
Of his military service, Wolthuis said, “Serving in the military is really tough, mostly on families. I also felt the loss of several coworkers and friends who died over the years during their military service. The most tragic died in a helicopter crash, another in an airplane crash and another from a gun misfire after training. Serving in the military is dangerous. “Many return from military service with scars and wounds, and many have wounds you can’t see, such as post traumatic stress disorder.”
Wolthuis also acknowledged the sacrifices his own family had to make. He said, “Many people have thanked me over the years for my military service, but the real sacrifice was given by my family. If you tell my children or my wife how much you appreciate their support and sacrifice as a military family, you will probably see me cry. They are my heroes.”
Wolthuis joked, “In my Air Force service, I did software development on smart weapon systems capabilities Captain Moroni would appreciate.”
Wolthuis also worked at the National Air and Space Intelligence Center (NASIC), where he was chief over Foreign Military Exploitation. As chief, Wolthuis analyzed the enemy’s hardware and figured out how it functioned to improve U.S. weapon systems.
One of Wolthuis’ favorite assignments was in Aviano, Italy, where he worked directly for the 31st Wing Commander as the Chief Protocol Officer. “In two years, I hosted 660 distinguished visitors, generals, White House staff, U.S. congressmen and senators, and many others. In fact, Aviano hosted the First Lady, Laura Bush. Her visit focused on inviting military members to transition to teaching in public schools after they retired.
“In 2007, I was deployed to Qatar. My first grandchild was born while I was deployed.”
Now a professor at BYUH, he said his favorite part about teaching is his students.
He said, “They have incredible and amazing stories of faith and endurance, dedication to their families, and [they] possess so much creativity and innovation. Our BYU–Hawaii graduates do so many incredible things.
“I’m so happy when I hear of their successes in their employment, and I’m beyond grateful when I hear of their joys with their own families, their ability to overcome adversity and stay the course of faithful followers of Christ.”
Growing up, Wolthuis said he had never considered serving in the military, even though his father had served. In fact, his father was at parachute jump school when Wolthuis was born.
As a young boy, Wolthuis loved the outdoors and enjoyed playing outside with his four siblings and the neighborhood children. “We logged hundreds of hours playing kickball, baseball, football, kick the can and any game we could invent. We built several forts and worked hard on the yard. My parents supported all our activities and encouraged us to be selfsufficient. We had part-time jobs delivering newspapers, mowing lawns, raking leaves and stayed very busy serving in the Church.”
Eventually, Wolthuis would serve in the Colorado Denver Mission. In 1981, shortly after returning from his mission, Wolthuis married his wife, Emily, who, at the time, taught at the MTC as a Greek translator for the Church.
After getting married, Wolthuis attended BYU in Provo, where he began his studies in mechanical engineering. He said, “I’ve always been fascinated with how machines and industrial operations work.”
As time went on, Wolthuis said his university studies became side-tracked, and he began working as a carpet cleaner and worked a summer as a soda delivery truck driver.
During this time, Wolthuis was home teaching an individual who informed him about the USAF scholarship for electrical engineering and encouraged him to apply. Wolthuis said, “My wife and I thought long and hard about this opportunity and did a lot of praying and fasting.”
To assist in this difficult decision, Wolthuis asked his father for a blessing. He said, “The blessing stated I should base my decision to enter the USAF on how well I did on my entry exam. The military uses a standardized test, much like taking the ACT, but much broader to match recruits with the right job in the military. ... To prepare, I got my hands on every practice test and study guide I could find.” Wolthuis spent months preparing, he said.
“After I took the test, my recruiter told me I had the highest score he had ever seen. I was able to pick my USAF job, engineering assistant. When I left for basic training in January of 1985, I was 24 years old, and my sweetheart was expecting our first baby.”
For the first four years of his service, Wolthuis worked in civil engineering. In order to make ends meet, Wolthuis worked as a part-time janitor while also taking university classes part-time.
After his third attempt applying for the USAF scholarship program, Wolthuis was finally selected. After selection, Wolthuis earned both bachelor’s and master’s degrees while serving in the Air Force. He also attended four months of officer training school, where he received a commission as a 2nd lieutenant.
Wolthuis served 16 years as an officer and, after 24 years total, retired as a major.
While serving in the Air Force, Wolthuis developed the knowledge and skills he would eventually implement in his classes at BYUH. In 2008, Wolthuis was officially hired and began teaching classes in software development, cybersecurity and project management for technology in the Faculty of Math &
Computing.
Wolthuis’ father, Robert Wolthuis, said of his son, “As his parents, we detected at every turn how proud he was to serve our nation which he loves dearly. He reflected a standard wherein he made every assignment an opportunity to excel. He saw much of the world and the United States. He was a great credit to the uniform he wore, and he cherished those 24 years, which allowed him to serve his country with distinction.”•
