USAFA Class Heritage

Retired Maj Marine Corps 83: NA (Naval Aviator): 

16: Co-Owner, BryCol Industries, Inc. Leander TX;

08-12: Mgr (Manager), Bus Property Orange County Assessor's Office Santa Ana CA (California);

02-03: Senior Project Manager JOA Group Costa Mesa CA (California);

01-02: Long Haul Truck Driver Schneider National Green Bay WI;

00-01: Business Consultant CTM Resources Costa Mesa CA (California);

99-00: Chief Operations Officer IXL Los Ange/es CA (California);

98-99: Manager Southam CA (California) Operations Ryno Consulting Costa Mesa CA (California);

98: ExDir DataDesigns HuntingtonBeach CA (California);

96-98: Regional Delivery Manager IBM Global Services Costa Mesa CA (California);

94-96: Consultant CTMResources CostaMesa CA (California);

92: Owner/Pres (President) WaterSavingSolutions;

90-94: SysEngr&HumanFactorsLab Program Management Rockwell lnt/Sea/BeachCA; 8790: Proposa/DevMgr Rockwe/1/ntl AnaheimCA;

86-87: MktDir HKoch&Sons AnaheimCA;

83-86: Proposa/Mgr (Manager) Rockwe/1/ntl AnaheimCA;

80-83: Nations/Univ (University)-MBA (Master of Business Administration) Fin;

76-83: ExO (Executive Officer)/ PltAH-1J HMA369 Det16 CampPend/etonCA;

75-76: C Anti-AirWarfareSec Daveen MCB Quantico VA;

73-75: TestP/t NavAirTestcan PatuxantRivarNAFStn;

72-73: Stu (Student)/ TestPlt TastPltSch NAS (Naval Air Station) Patuxant RivarMD;

71-72: OpnsAnlst WarGamasBr DavCan MCBQuantico VA;

70-71: OpnsAn1st G-3 1MAW/.3MAB DaNangABSVN;

70: AsstMainOVMFA 122MAG13 PhuBaiSVN;

69-70: PltVMFA531E/ToroCA;

69: MS (Mississippi) OpnsRsch USNPGS;

66-67: Pit (Pilot) 235/232VMF/ReportsO 1MarAirWgDaNangABSVN;

65-66: PltVMF 333Beaufort;

64: PltTng (Pilot Training) Pensacola;

63-64: USMCBasicQuantico; 

1BSM (Bronze Star Medal)-27AM (Air Medal)-1JSCM (Joint Service Commendation Medal)

(following from Legacy.com obituary)

Larry Allen Backus was born in 1941 in Elgin, Illinois, to Paul Louis Backus and Helen Mary Toth.

Larry graduated from the Air Force Academy in 1963 and was commissioned into the United States Marine Corps. He completed Marine Corps basic training at Quantico in 1963-64 and pilot training at Pensacola in 1964, going on to fly with VMF-333 and serve in combat operations at Da Nang. He served in Vietnam and South Korea, and later held operations analyst roles in Vietnam from 1969-71 and test pilot positions at the Naval Air Test Center from 1972-76. His decorations included the Bronze Star Medal, 27 Air Medals, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, the Presidential Unit Citation, the Vietnam Service Medal with Star, and the Vietnamese Technical Service Medal.

Larry went on to earn an MBA and a master's degree in engineering, and built a civilian career following his military retirement, holding management positions at Rockwell International, IBM, and various consulting firms through 2016.

Larry married Kelli Backus on December 14, 2013, in Cedar Park, Texas. He was a devoted, born-again Christian, passionate about evangelism at First Baptist Church of Round Rock, where he was remembered as "a humble man" who "loved Jesus first."

He was survived by his wife Kelli; son Paul and wife Kimberly (children Payton and Madeleine); daughter Rebecca Tversky and husband Jeff, a fellow Marine (children Morgan and Nicholas); daughters Charlotte and Shannon Andersen (Shannon's children Brody, Dylan, and Pierce); and stepchildren Collin and Bryce Strickland. He was preceded in death by his parents and brother Terry.

Larry Allen Backus died September 30, 2018, in Leander, Texas, at the age of 77. A memorial service was held October 6, 2018, at First Baptist Church of Round Rock, and he was buried October 19, 2018, at Central Texas State Veterans Cemetery in Killeen, Texas.