Chris Mahana's Obituary
Jimmie “Chris” Mahana was born in New Martinsville, WV on October 25, 1962. He passed away on August 18, 2023 after a four year hard fought battle with cancer. He was preceded in death by his young daughter in 1998. He is survived by his wife, Tammie, his sons Tyler and James, and his older brother Shawn.
Chris was born to Mary Louis, who he utterly adored, and Jimmie Mahana, a safety and security manager in the aluminum industry for a multinational company, Kaiser Aluminum. He spent his first six years in New Martinsville from 1962-1968, and Ravenswood, WV from 1968-1970. His family moved to Ghana, West Africa in 1970 where they traveled to several West African states and Europe while living there. They left Ghana in 1972 following a coup d’etat, and moved to Columbiana, OH where he was a star athlete playing little league baseball and football. In 1976 his family moved to Veradale (now Spokane Valley) where he attended Junior High and Central Valley High School. Chris lettered in football and also attained the rank of Eagle Scout and inducted into the “Order of the Arrow”. He graduated HS in 1981, enlisted in the US Marine Reserves and began attending Eastern Washington University, eventually transferring to the Army ROTC program. He attended Airborne School in 1985. He graduated college with a Bachelors degree in Economics and got his Infantry Officer commission into the Army in 1986.
Chris attended Infantry Basic Course and became Ranger qualified in 1987 before being assigned to Ft Ord, CA as a rifle platoon leader. Chris’ platoon fired the first shot during the invasion of Panama in 1989. Chris also married his college sweetheart, Anne Anderson, in 1989 and they had two children together, Tyler and Stephanie. After attending the Infantry Advanced Course in 1991 he was assigned to the Joint Security Area in South Korea along the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). In 1992 he was restationed to Ft Stewart, GA where he had a variety of assignments culminating in back to back Company Commands, and a deployment to Kuwait in 1994 for Intrinsic Action. In 1997 he moved to the Washington DC area and took a job in the Operational Test Command as a Testing and Evaluation Officer for new innovative Army weapons and equipment. In 1998, after a devastating family tragedy he was reassigned to Eastern Washington
University as an ROTC instructor in order to be closer to his father in Spokane. In 1999 he was selected to attend the resident Command and General Staff College at Ft Leavenworth, KS. Upon graduation they sent him back to South Korea and the Joint Security Area in Panmunjon near the DMZ to be the United Nations Security Battalion Executive Officer. While in Korea he married his second wife, Tammie Pettit, in 2000, with whom he shares a son, James.
Chris returned to the United States with an assignment at Fort Lewis, WA in 2001 as the 1-23 Infantry Battalion Executive Officer. In 2003 he transferred to the Brigade Coordination Cell to assist the formation and resourcing of the Army’s new Stryker Brigade Combat Teams, which lead to an eventual move in 2004 to Fort Indiantown Gap, PA as the team lead for the Training and Doctrine Command Coordination Cell tasked to assist the PAARNG 56th Infantry Brigade transition to a Stryker Brigade. In 2006 he took Command of 1-307th Training Support Battalion as “Bastard 6”. With his wife deployed and raising his young son, Chris retired from the Army in 2008 as a Lieutenant Colonel.
LTC Mahana’s decorations while serving include the Legion of Merit, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Meritorious Service Medal (3rd Award), Joint Service Commendation Medal (4th Award), Army Achievement Medal (2nd Award), Army Superior Unit Award, National Defense Service Medal (2nd Award), Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, Southwest Asia Service Medal with Bronze Service Star, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Korean Defense Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Armed Forces Reserve Medal, Overseas Service Ribbon, Combat Infantryman’s Badge, Ranger Tab, and Parachutist Badge.
Upon his retirement from the Army Chris continued to serve the next eleven years as a contracted civilian in various positions, first at Joint Base Lewis McChord, and then with Stanford Research Institute (later named Ravenswood Solutions) as he continued his quest to train Soldiers. One of his favorite jobs since leaving the active military was as a team lead. Once diagnosed with cancer in the fall of 2019 he was forced to retire, as he stayed close to home with his personal battle that lasted four years. He enjoyed seeing his younger son play soccer and baseball and grow into a phenomenal young man. He also enjoyed spending time with friends and family, who poured out their love and support throughout his struggle.
A true friend is never truly gone. Their spirit lives on in the memories of those who loved them – Chris Mahana will live on in the memories of so many.
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