The U.S Air Force Academy Endowment has named Senior Vice President Don Raines to its Board of Directors. He currently serves as SVP of Corporate Business Development and Capture for MacAulay-Brown Inc.
“With Don joining the Endowment Board of Directors, he continues his lasting commitment to the Air Force and the Academy following his stellar Air Force career,” USAFA Endowment President and CEO Retired Major General Mark Volcheff said. “Don’s been a strong supporter of the Academy’s Department of History and service to our men and women in uniform through contracted support to Dept. of Defense missions. Most people don’t know that Don is also an avid collector of Napoleonic Books and memorabilia, which he has graciously bequeathed to the McDermott Library Special Collections.”
Raines graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1986 with a bachelor’s degree in history. He also earned a master’s degree in business administration from California’s Chapman University in 1995. Raines served more than 24 years in the Air Force Security Forces, including more than 10 years in support of the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), officially retiring with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in 2006. Before joining MacB, he worked in executive business development roles for ManTech and Raytheon, and also as President of RIIT Solutions, LLC.
“My selection is a chance for me to give back to the Academy and institution that defined my career,” Raines said. “As the youngest military institution, we don’t have 200 years of history to fall back on, but rely heavily on graduates from the 1960s and 1970s for leadership on organizations, councils and committees. Now it’s time for more recent graduates to help guide the Academy’s next 50 years.”
The Academy’s Endowment Board provides financial support for vital Academy programs and services for cadets and graduates. The goal of the Board of Directors is to provide oversight and direction of all charitable donations in accordance with donor directives, as well as stewardship of USAFA operations, audited reports and investment gains. There are currently 20 Directors serving on the Endowment Board, and 75 percent are Academy graduates.
Raines is a Life Member of the USAF Academy Association of Graduates and the Veterans of Foreign Wars, earning an Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal during an operation in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He received more than two dozen military decorations and was awarded the Director’s Circle Award and Superior Service Medal from NRO for service. Raines graduated from the Los Angeles Police Department’s Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) instruction course and has served eight years on the Service Academy Selection Committee for Virginia’s 10th Congressional District.
