Daniel Manrique, 33, Thousand Oaks mass shooting victim, was a Marine veteran who helped other vets

Ex-Marine sergeant Daniel Manrique dedicated his life to helping emotionally scarred veterans get back on their feet. And his death at the hands of a fellow Marine with post-traumatic stress syndrome showed the importance of Manrique’s mission, to get veterans the help they need, friends said.

Manrique, 33, of Thousand Oaks worked with a non-profit group helping veterans overcome their feelings of isolation, transitioning them back to the community. He also volunteered with a hospital helping the homeless and at a local church working in daycare.

“The best way I can describe him is as a ‘saint.’ He truly believed in service,” said friend and business partner Tim O’Brien. “Dan was the guy you could rely on if you ran out of gas in the middle of the night. He would help you out if something bad happened. He was there, dedicated, loyal.”

Manrique served with the 2nd Combat Engineer Battalion, 2nd Marine Division as a radio operator and deployed to Afghanistan in 2007 with the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, said Bana Miller, spokesperson for Team Red, White and Blue, a non-profit group that helps veterans transition.

Miller said Manrique was discharged in 2010 and joined Team Red, White and Blue’s Ventura County Chapter two years later. In 2014, he became the chapter’s captain and within the last month landed a job with the group as a regional program manager.

“He touched hundreds of thousands of vets,” Miller said.

Manrique and O’Brien, who met their freshman year at Westlake High School in Westlake Village – class of 2003 – were preparing to open a veteran-oriented brewery. They called it “O’brique” brewery, a combination of their last names.

O’Brien, 33, of Thousand Oaks, said he was impressed by his partner’s ability to fit his work, his business and his service into one busy day.

“He never stood still, never turned his brain off. He was always moving, moving, moving,” O’Brien said.