Ron Hull

From a young age, Ron Hull always knew that he wanted to serve. He grew up playing Army, jumping out of trees and off his roof, imagining he was leaping from a plane in Airborne School. Generations before him were dedicated to serving our nation as well — Hull even has his great grandfather's draft card. At age 17, Hull enrolled in the United States Army and continued to serve for 26 years.

Hull held a multitude of positions in various fields over his 26 years with the Army, including roles in infantry, engineering and medicine. For the first five years he spent on active duty, he was an infantry assistant machine gunner while stationed at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. When an opportunity to be stationed in Korea presented itself, he made the decision to leave Kentucky and spend 14 months at Camp Hovey, Korea. Upon returning, Hull separated from the Army in 1997. He got married and had his first child.

He returned to active duty in 2001 and held several roles, including operating room surgical technician with the 250th Forward Surgical Team (Airborne) at Fort Lewis, Washington. After a second separation in 2005, Hull returned to active duty and reclassed as a plumber. During this time, he was deployed to Iraq from 2007 through 2008, during which his vehicle was hit by an improvised explosive device. Hull was one of only two staff sergeants to be awarded a Bronze Star for his heroic achievement and service during this deployment.

Upon his return from Iraq, he was stationed at Fort Bragg, North Carolina and deployed to Afghanistan for six months where he worked closely with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). He returned to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri after re-deployment and continued teaching as a master instructor at the Engineer Warrant Officer School. Hull was then selected to become the manager of the Engineer Geospatial School. ­

Finally, Hull was stationed at Fort McCoy in Wisconsin. Being from Wisconsin, this was his dream location. He has since retired from service and continues to live in Wisconsin with his family.

Of all the experiences that Hull had while serving, a highlight was teaching at the Noncommissioned Officer Academy where he taught thousands of soon-to-be noncommissioned officers. This was the first educational requirement for them, and Hull is proud to have given them the first steppingstone in their military career. He proudly passed along his extensive knowledge and leadership skills to a new generation of leaders.

While holding several positions in the Army, Hull learned the importance of never letting anyone tell him that he can’t do something. “There is always a way to get what you want or get where you want to be,” he said. “Professional and personal growth should be prioritized. If someone is telling you a goal is not possible, find another way to achieve what you want.”

Once retired, Hull was interested in continuing a career in the health care field, which led him to Optum. He joined the Optum Serve team in September of 2019 as a Veteran experience officer for Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and Mississippi. As a Veteran himself, he has spent countless hours working through the Veterans Affairs medical system. This enables Hull to experience these health care services firsthand,  allowing him to see potential improvements and help put them into action.