READY FOR TAKEOFF

United States Marine Corps Major and Military Instructor Pilot Keller Rongey has been all over the world since the age of 18, from the weeks he spent with a Rotary TABU (Towards A Better Understanding) contingent in Belfast, Northern Ireland, to overseeing the planning and execution of tactical sorties in support of operations in Northern Africa and Europe.

He climbed Mount Fuji in Japan and Mount Etna in Italy.

As a young cellist, he performed with an orchestra in Scandinavia, the United Kingdom, and Mexico City.

But the humble, salt-of-the-earth Rongey, 34, would be perfectly content to be known as something other than a decorated aviator with a well-worn passport.

Forever-grateful Highland Park native would suit him to a tee.

“I had a phenomenal childhood in Highland Park, growing up in a modest house near Sunset Park,” says Rongey, who lives in Pensacola, Florida, and hopes to land a job soon as a commercial pilot with a major airline. “I loved the school district, the park district, and all of the opportunities they provided. I still stay in touch with the group of good guys I befriended in Highland Park.

“It’s on the table, returning someday to Highland Park to raise a family,” adds Rongey, a 2007 Highland Park High School graduate who will marry St. Louis native Kori Younger next May 4 in Pensacola.

“Yes, I’m a Star Wars fan,” Rongey says, referring to his “May the Fourth be with You” wedding date.

Rongey’s interest in travel rivaled that of his passion for tackling ball carriers as an all-Central Suburban League-North defensive lineman for Highland Park High’s football program, which reached the Class 6A state quarterfinals in 2005, Rongey’s junior season. He earned CSL North Defensive Player of the Year honors as a senior.

“I found out Southern Illinois University (Carbondale) had a very good and well-respected aviation management program, so I applied to attend there, thinking I’d also play football,” says Rongey, who also competed in lacrosse, gymnastics, and swimming and diving as an HPHS Giant. “But I ended up playing rugby in college.”

A genuine desire to “give back” led Rongey to enlist in the U.S. Marines’ Officer Candidate School in the summer of 2009. He became an OCS graduate in 2010 and an SIU graduate in 2011. Rongey attended flight school after the U.S. Marines offered him an aviation contract.

His military career in the U.S. Marine Corps took off from there, from first lieutenant to second lieutenant to captain. Rongey was promoted to major in July 2021. He flew more than 320 events, including more than 260 quality training sorties with a perfect safety record. During highly dynamic deployments in demanding environments and all weather conditions, Rongey served as a formation leader, maintenance check pilot, instructor pilot, and aircraft commander.

He also was an airframes division officer in charge of 72 maintainers. Among the recognitions he received were Navy and Marine Corps Achievement medals in 2019 and 2020, and a Chief Naval Operations Aviation Safety Award in 2021.

“What I experienced all those years was incredible,” says Rongey, who flew an MV-22 Osprey, which is a combination of a helicopter and a turboprop aircraft. “I looked at the men and women who served under me as my brothers and sisters, and we went overseas to build relationships with our NATO allies. As a mentor and a teacher, I built relationships with my brothers and sisters by talking and listening. I wanted to help them.”

Rongey exemplified the United States Marine Corps’ purpose year after year.

“United States Marines are a family that fights together finding individual purpose in a collective cause—the protection of our Nation and the advancement of its ideals,” the mission begins. “Side by side, we welcome obstacles and thrive on challenges.”

“I worked hard every year because I didn’t want to look back and regret any part of it,” Rongey says. “I’m sad I’m leaving the Marines, but it’s time—the right time—to start a new chapter in my life.”

Rongey counts his parents, David and Linda, as major influences in his life. David, who grew up in East St. Louis in downstate Illinois, served in the U.S. Army for six years and recently retired as principal at West School in Glencoe. Linda is a native of Scotland whose commitment to community service heartened a young Keller.

“They’re great parents,” says Rongey, who volunteered for Habitat for Humanity in 2012 and again from 2020 to2022. “They loved my father and the work he did for so many years at West School. I remember helping my mom at soup kitchens and the positive impact she had on many.”

Keller Rongey plans to spend this Memorial Day like he did in previous years— thinking about his fallen brothers and sisters and others.

“A lot of people in the United States sacrificed their lives for their country,” Rongey says. “I’ll think about them on Memorial Day, but I’ll also think about the families that lost loved ones who served our country. For many, Memorial Day is a time to gather with family and friends, relax, celebrate the start of summer, and enjoy a barbeque on a patio. That’s great, but my hope is that they set aside some time on an important day to remember our country’s true heroes.

“That’s one way to honor them,” he adds. Now that he’s in a transition stage, Rongey has been “reading a ton” about a variety of subjects.

“I have always been interested in diversity and discovering things about the world’s societies and cultures,” Rongey says. “In the military, I’d be away with a team, consisting of people with all kinds of backgrounds, for six to 10 months at a time. I loved those opportunities.

“People,” he continues, “should never stop learning, never stop growing.”