Terry's first word was "da-da," which would later in life be made into a song by Trio. His brother quickly nick-named the young boy "Scooter," probably due to Terry's quickness and maneuverability. This would be his nick-name for quite some time. Then Terry felt insulted, and Tony was forced to stop. He often liked to play with the pet Golden Retreiver "Sundance." Even at such a young age, Walter and Deborah had thoughts of success for their son.
Terry had a great love for the camera early in life. Every time he saw that little flashy thing on top of a small black box, the child laughed and giggled with delight. At first, it was believed that Terry would grow to be a photographer, but that thought soon perished. It was certain that Terry would be much more than that. With his early cuteness, the family thought Terry to be an actor or model. These thoughts would diminish when Terry became a young adult, which you will see later in this chronology. For now, though, he was a good actor, as long as he was around his family. Terry was very shy around someone he didn't know, and he definitely wasn't quick to make friends with his cousins and relatives. He was, however, quick to hit them.
Terry pretty much made his mind up on what he wanted to be... a baseball player. It was the one thing that he never said no to. In his first year, he had the only team in Rocketball history to go undefeated. Terry remembers making the last out in the last game of that season. Also on that incredible team were stars to come like Dennis Bringedahl and Dan Bosma. Terry was already a star. In the coaches eyes, Terry was, "the best darn Rocketball player to ever walk the planet." Coach Dennis Bringedahl, Sr. was very proud.
Meanwhile, Terry was getting ready to start pre-school. This upset him very much because there was no baseball in pre-school. All there was to do in pre-school was take naps and hammer a stupid nail into a board. Terry remembers a funny story when helped the teacher cook. It was his turn to crack an egg into a bowl, and well... Terry had never done that before. To make a long story short, the huge bowl was missed, and the egg ended up all over the table and dripping onto the floor. Terry went to the corner and cried. Other than that, he was always smiling, as you can see by the picture. For this reason, thoughts of a model were not out of the minds of his parents just yet. Tony was jealous.
Terry's favorite holiday was definitely Halloween. For his first ever Halloween, Terry doesn't remember what he dressed up as. He thinks it might have been the time he dressed up as the sun, but he thinks probably not. Terry loved to dress up in costume and pretend to be something. For example, in this photo, Terry is trying look like a bat in this homemade costume. The only reason he isn't flapping his arms like a bat right now is because he didn't want his older brother (not pictured) to call him a dork and beat him. It is believed that Tony did this due to his jealousy. Terry strongly believed this. In fact, Terry's face wasn't supposed to be covered, but Tony begged and pleaded with Mom to get it that way so neither person would be in the spotlight. Terry didn't always mind not getting the attention he deserved, because Terry wasn't one to get upset... ever. Other Terry costumes include: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Michealangelo, Reeses Peanut Butter Cup, Mummy, Vampire, Man with a Million Faces, Ogre, Skittle, and Ace Ventura: Pet Detective. Terry plans on being a Tootsie Roll Pop in October 1998. After 2000, it is believed that Terry will stop dressing up for the holiday and become an official candy giver-outer. This will probably be a heart-breaking moment for him. He will probably be crying.
At first, Tony and Terry were bitter rivals, thriving for attention. Tony would beat Terry at everything (still occurs), and that made Terry upset. When Terry would surprise Tony, Tony would get mad and beat Terry down. This would upset Terry, so he told Mom and Dad. Mom and Dad would yell at Tony. Then Tony, when Mom and Dad weren't looking, would beat Terry down. Then Terry told Mom and Dad and the story would continue in an evil and repetitive cycle. Later, Tony was sick of being told on, and Terry was sick of getting beat down, so they formed a sort of pact. It was now the children against the parents. Stories would be made up to get each other out of tough situations. Of course, the children were the only ones that believed these stories. The plans almost always fell through. But heck, IT WAS FUN!
As we jump forward in time about 4 years when Terry was about 10, it's easy to see that the ideas of modeling have now gone out the window. Terry was at least starting to make some friends at school. It was fifth grade at Central Elementary, and Terry had a really cool teacher. Also in this grade, Terry began to think about another occupation... journalism. His teacher, Mr. Coletta, made Terry the person in charge of giving interviews for the school paper. His page was called, "Up Close and Personal." It was Terry's first job, and he was proud. That was not the only thing Terry was proud of, however. At Central, there were these things called HIGH FIVES and TICKETS. You would get High Fives for doing something good, and Tickets for doing something bad. Terry was honored with three High Fives, and no Tickets, and he only came close to getting a Ticket once, and that was just over a stupid football. Thankfully, the teacher did not issue tickets.
Three years later, the O'Neal family to travel. They took a trip out to the Southwest (Grand Canyon, Texas, Devil's Tower). The following year the went East and North (Maine, Washington DC, Philadelphia). Then they took a year off. The following year was the final of their mission to hit all 48 states, and Alaska. Northwest (Oregon, the Trees of Mystery in California, and back to Devil's Tower) was the final one. Terry took a trip to Disney World when he was 6, 9, and 15, and wants to go back some day. He also plans to conquer the Devil's Tower in Wyoming, which was the first ever Monument in the United States. His goal is to climb it and sky dive off of it. To the right is a picture of Devil's Tower. Terry also would like to go to "The Price is Right" and meet Bob Barker. As you can see by the picture from 1994, Terry stopped combing his his hair, and rumors of him being gay began. Falsely, these rumors would continue until High School, but have died down. Surprisingly, Terry's 
popularity has grown since he got to High School. He has won several things in a row, showing his classmate's respect for him. In his Freshman year, he was elected Most Spirited. Then as a Sophomore, he was most spirited again, along with being the Class Vice President and Homecoming Representative. (
Pic ) His Junior year, Terry was voted Junior Class President, putting him in charge of organizing the Prom. It was a job well done for most people, and a statement from the principal said that it was one of the best since he's been at Reeths-Puffer. Again that year, Terry was elected Most Spirited, and in his Senior year, Terry was voted Most Spirited (to complete the sweep), the class clown (which ticked him off), and to the Homecoming Court, where he had the opportunity to walk with Rachel Damm.
After graduation, Terry decided to attend Eastern Michigan University, and after just one semester transferred to Calvin College where he continued his baseball career and his distaste for the college life.
While at Calvin, Terry met a lovely lady Melia whom he has been dating since his Sophomore year. Also, with a Mathematics degree just one more class away, and a Philosophy minor just two classes from completion, Terry is nearing the end of his schooling. He currently works during the summer for the Muskegon County Wastewater Facility at Twin Lake County park as a Ranger with Sarah Hicks, Scott Evans, and the wonderful family of Jody and Kathy Woodruff, which includes Heather, Tasha, Josh, and one other person.