Tributes

A true American hero, Brett L. Niles will be remembered as a loving husband, father and grandfather; soldier for Christ; caring friend to everyone he met; and a proud U.S. Army Veteran who never stopped living the Ranger Creed. His wife, Kara, was the love of his life and his soulmate. They fell in love and married within five and a half months of meeting, and spent 20 years loving each other through good times and bad. Brett loved their daughter Conner with all his heart, and pushed her to be the best that she could be. He was her biggest cheerleader whether she was singing, modeling or working toward her cosmetology license. And he couldn’t have been any prouder to be “Papa” to his precious granddaughter whom he lovingly nicknamed “Schnookums.” A native of Honolulu, Hawaii, Brett graduated from Aiea High School, enlisted in the U.S. Army and served proudly as an infantryman in the 82nd Airborne Division. After completing his service, he attended the University of Hawaii where he earned a bachelor’s degree in photojournalism, and served on the staff of the university newspaper and worked as a freelance photographer for the local newspaper. During college, Brett continued his military service as a member of the Hawaii Army National Guard. After graduation, he re-enlisted in the Army and graduated from Ranger School. This was one of Brett’s proudest achievements as it is known as the Army’s most physically and mentally demanding leadership school. He then completed Officer Candidate School and was assigned as a Field Artillery Officer at Ft. Sill in Lawton, Oklahoma. While stationed there, he earned his master's degree in Computer Resource & Information Management. In 2000, he was reassigned to Ft. Sam Houston's Emergency Operations Center and was selected to attend the prestigious Cyber Center of Excellence at Fort Gordon in Georgia where he was trained in Information Operations. He rose to the rank of Major earning many honors along the way. He earned his master's certificate in Project Management before retiring after 20 years of dedicated service. Brett’s Army career positioned him well for his second career in corporate America. After retirement, Brett put his IT training, project management skills and leadership experience to good use by serving in project management positions with Tesoro, Rackspace, USAA and most recently, he served as a Sr. Manager at CPS Energy. Wherever he worked, he was well-liked and well-respected for his ability to lead and successfully complete complex IT projects. His tireless pursuit of excellence, commitment to team and take-charge personality made him a great leader in the military and the civilian world. He never stopped learning and continued to earn a long list of certifications in his field. In his spare time, Brett loved spending time with Kara, playing with their granddaughter, watching their favorite TV shows and sitting on the porch admiring their Hill Country view. He also enjoyed meeting his buddies on the golf course or at the shooting range and serving up his favorite dishes for family & friends. On Sundays, you could find him worshipping the Lord at Community Bible Church. Brett will be remembered for his wisdom, integrity, honor, fun-loving personality and caring and generous nature. His heart was as big as his personality, as he lived to help others and volunteered for many worthy causes. Most of all, he will be remembered for putting his trust in the Lord and having a joyful heart in all that he did. Brett is survived by his wife Kara, daughter Conner, granddaughter Evelyn, sister Randee Masuhara, mother-in-law Virginia Shaw and many nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles & sisters-in-law. There will be a celebration of his life on Saturday, April 8 at 10 a.m. at Community Bible Church, 7100 Highway 281 North, Spring Branch, TX 78070. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested contributions to https://www.youcaring.com/brettniles-790174 to support Mission 22 and 22Kill to help veterans struggling with mental health issues get the treatment they need when they need it the most.

Tributes

Brett Lee Niles

July 20, 1960 - March 30, 2017