Meet Major Fast, 325th CPTS commander

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Alex Echols
  • 325th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
TYNDALL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. --  He grew into a man in Bryam, Miss. and despite being born in Missouri, considers himself a "southern boy from Mississippi."

Maj. Timothy W. Fast, 325th Comptroller Squadron commander, was born in Festus, Mo. and moved to Byram when he was six.

Growing up he had always wanted to be a football star and played at Byram High School, but that just wasn't in the cards. He graduated with a class of 80 peers.

After high school Major Fast went to college for a few years but felt his true calling was elsewhere.

At the time, his brother was stationed in Germany and talked about all the things he was doing with the Air Force. He was the primary influence in Major Fast's decision to join.

"Now it's hard for me to imagine doing anything but this," said Major Fast. "I love being associated with the Air Force."

The major enlisted in June 1991 and served for eight years. He was then commissioned in May 2001 through the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps at the University of Oklahoma.

In 2002, his brother retired from the Air Force.

"I was a second lieutenant when my brother retired," Major Fast said. "He asked me to be the presiding officer over the retirement."

During the ceremony Major Fast spoke on how his brother motivated him to join and his impact on him as well as the people around him. Telling others about the inspiration his brother was to him was one of the major's proudest moments.

He has since then been a financial services officer at Peterson Air Force Base, a cost analyst at Hanscom Air Base, an instructor at the finance technical school at Keesler Air Force Base and a Military Personnel Appropriation budget analyst at the Pentagon.

"I'm excited about taking this command," Major Fast said. "I'm really excited about being here at Tyndall. I think it's a great place and a great base. I'm really excited about the things that we can do here, and I really look forward to working with everybody."

Major Fast has a wife Kara, who he met at the Pentagon, and a 16 year old son Ivan, who loves to fish.

They are both extremely happy to be here. They especially enjoy the quietness of Tyndall as opposed to the city noise that they are used to, said Major Fast.

The major likes golf, football and just being outside in general, but mostly, he loves working out at the gym. He tries to go at least five or six times a week.

"I just don't feel good by the end of the day if I don't do something fitness based," Major Fast said. "It really helps you deal with a lot of stressors you encounter during the day."

Overall, Major Fast said he wants to encourage everyone to press forward and keep looking ahead.

"In today's environment, nothing is easy, but if you keep plugging ahead, good things will happen," said Major Fast. "Have a direction in mind of where you want to be, and keep putting one foot in front of the other to get there."