Staff Spotlight: Ellen Shannon-Ball, EC Paraprofessional

When I was a freshman at Western Illinois University, I was walking through the school union during the club recruitment day. There was a group of students behind a table who asked me if I liked rappelling, hiking, camping, and other outside activities. I said yes and, much to my surprise, when I showed up at the first meeting, the students walked into the room in military uniforms. I had never heard of ROTC, but always felt a calling to serve in the armed forces. I was active in ROTC during my four years at WIU, where I also met my husband, Jeff. Upon graduation, I joined him on active duty. I have spent the last 26 years on active duty or in the Army Reserve. It is a wonderful career that has provided me opportunities to jump out of airplanes, climb glaciers, travel across many different counties, and work with an amazing number of professional, altruistic soldiers, and service members. My next assignment will be to command a combat support hospital in Kuwait. We will be treating U.S. Army soldiers who need medical support.

Normally when I set up my hospital, we carry the entire hospital out on trailers and set it up, similar to the hospital in the TV show “MASH.” This deployment, the hospital is already established so we will mainly just be switching out soldiers. This is a positive because it is very hot in Kuwait. I have not run the hospital yet, so you’ll have to wait and ask that question when I get back. 🙂

It is a great privilege to be selected to command my soldiers. Leading soldiers and being charged with the responsibility of their professional development, training, and their livelihood is an awesome trust. It is a responsibility that weighs heavily and many times impacts my family. The most challenging part of serving in the military is when I deploy, even on short missions, and the impact it has on my family. They truly are the ones sacrificing so I can serve.