About Us

About us

INTRODUCTION OF US

Leaving The Sideline was founded on the principals of one is one too many.

We are located in the great state of Washington and are a recognized 501(c)(3) organization.  Our group was founded by Veterans for Veterans, First Responders and Active Military.

We strive to help all of our brothers and sisters find the programs and resources they need, by matching them to the best programs and services that fit their needs.

Financial Education
Suicide Prevention
Mental Health Awareness
Veteran Run

Saving lives is our mission.

Leaving The Sideline stood up in 2020 and since then we have saved over 320 lives of Veterans, First Responders and Active Military preventing them from taking their own lives and preventing the hardships families go through when losing a loved one.

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We've saved the lives of over 320 Veterans, First Responders and Active Military

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Saving One Life at a Time

Meet Our People

Our Executive Board is supported by a team of well qualified directors who have first hand knowledge of how impactful Leaving The Sideline’s mission statement is of “One Suicide is one too many.”  Each Member of the team has their own strengths that help make Leaving The Sideline successful in helping Veterans, First Responders and Active Military.

Excutive Director & Board Members

Michael "Chief" Rathbun

Executive Director

Michael "Chief" Rathbun

Keith Looker

Executive Board President

Keith Looker

Keith Looker is the Manager for the Lacey Veterans Services Hub. He is a 32 year Veteran of the U.S. Army. The majority of his career was spent with the 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) with multiple combat tours to Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Operation Enduring Freedom-Philippines. Keith has a Masters in Management and Leadership from Webster University. Keith is on the Board of Directors for Rebuilding Together Thurston County and Leaving the Sidelines. He is also an active member of the American Legion and the South Puget Sound Rotary Club.

Theresa Norton

Executive Board Vice President

Theresa Norton

Theresa Norton attended Utah State University and was on the Dean’s list the entire time she attended school. She received her Bachelors degree in Elementary Education with Cum Laude, her final GPA was a 3.9 upon leaving school. Theresa has also attended Southern Utah University where she received her endorsement in English as a Second Language. She currently teaches 5th grade for a local school district located in the great state of Utah. When Theresa is not helping shape the future of tomorrows generation she can be found playing board games with her two daughters and her husband. Her current place of residence is South Jordan, UT.

Directors

Jeff Norton

Director of Information Technology and Business Operations

Jeff Norton

Jeff is an eight year Army Veteran and served in Operation Enduring Freedom and has been deployed both stateside and overseas. He was discharged from the Army in 2010. Jeff has a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management, Bachelor’s Degree in History and Master’s degree in Instructional Technology and Learning Science. Jeff has gone on to obtain seven industry certifications that cover a wide variety of Microsoft Products and coding. Currently he is a small business owner and a technology teacher in the state of Utah. Jeff has been teaching for five years. He is happily married to his beautiful wife, Theresa. He has to beautiful daughters that are ages 6 and 8. He currently resides in South Jordan, UT.

Tyler Turpin

Director of Communications
Tyler Mccoy is a Veteran of the United States Coast Guard and served 8 years and served seven years as a Law Enforcement Office with a local police department in the great state of Washington who is currently working in first responder mental health with the State of Washington. K9 Arlo is a medically retired police K9 who was shot in the line of duty last year while trying to apprehend a dangerous suspect. Tyler and K9 Arlo currently work within their community to bring awareness on mental health.