Michael Ball (Mike) grew up in St. Ignatius, Montana, and joined the Marine Corps on his 18th birthday. After four year as a Korean linguist, he got out and travelled the world teaching English for a short while, before ending up in Hawaii. Mike joined a National Guard Unit in Hawaii, and over the next 6 years served as a medic in several Guard/Reserve units before returning to active duty in the Air Force in 2000. After 9-11, he was sent to Kuwait to support increased security for U.S. bases there, and upon his return, he volunteered for training to fly Aeromedical Evacuation. Over the following ten years Mike deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan multiple times, setting up a patient staging facility at Baghdad Airport, flying wounded out of Kandahar and Bagram, and serving as a medic and instructor on the Provincial Reconstruction team in Zabul Province. Mike served as the NCOIC of the patient staging facility at Ramstein Air Base Germany, on staff at Headquarters U.S. Air Forces in Europe, and as the flight chief for Air Force medics and nurses at Walter Reed Military Medical Center at Bethesda, before retiring in November of 2013.

After retiring Mike continued to work for veterans through several veterans’ service organizations and nonprofits, including The Mission Continues, AMVETS, and Dog Tag Inc. Mike worked for Loudoun County Virginia, setting up a new veteran’s services program, and serving as a governing board member for the Loudoun County Continuum of Care for homelessness. He was also the director of the nonprofit ServingTogether, which works to create a coordinated network of service and support for veterans and military families.  

In 2019, Mike stepped down from nonprofits due to some health issues and now runs a home-based business, but he remains deeply committed to continuing to serve his fellow veterans and their families.

Mike received his BS in Environmental Studies from American Military University, and a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Maryland Global Campus.

He is married to Tanya Mazarowski, and they have three sons, Owen, Connor, and Cameron.