SGM Baller selected commissaries’ senior enlisted advisor for overseas operations
FORT LEE, Va. – With more than 28 years of Army service behind him, Sgt. Maj. Matthew Baller, has spent a career working with the broad diversity of civilian and military personnel alike.
As the Defense Commissary Agency’s new senior enlisted advisor for overseas commissary store operations, those skills will come in handy as he helps DeCA maintain and improve a world class commissary benefit.
“I look forward to meeting our team members to listen and learn from them and to share my insights and personal appreciation for their efforts in supporting our military communities, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Baller said.
“Just as important, I look forward to meeting with our senior military leaders in the Pacific and European areas to both share the incredible legacy of the Defense Commissary Agency, and to obtain their feedback and suggestions on how we are doing and how we can improve the commissary benefit for our patrons,” he added.
Baller assumed duties as DeCA’s senior enlisted advisor for overseas operations this month after serving nearly three years as command sergeant major of the 30th Medical Brigade, Sembach, Germany, and more recently in 2020 as the interim command sergeant major of Regional Health Command-Europe, from January to July in direct support to the Coronavirus-19 pandemic.
“Sergeant Major Baller is a welcome and timely addition to Team DeCA as we strive to consistently deliver the high quality commissary benefit that our patrons are counting on,” said Rogers E. Campbell, the agency’s executive director for store operations. “His leadership, passion and expertise will serve us all well.”
Working out of his office at DeCA Europe headquarters on Kapaun Air Station, Kaiserslautern, Germany, Baller is responsible for advising Campbell on all matters of service members’ needs related to the commissary benefit. He also serves as the agency’s overseas liaison to senior leaders of the armed services supported by the 57 overseas commissaries in DeCA’s Europe and Pacific areas.
Baller entered the Army in 1991 and attended basic combat training at Fort Knox, Kentucky, and advanced individual training at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, where he graduated as a behavioral health specialist. He has held a variety of leadership and expertise broadening assignments in the continental United States and overseas.
In 1999, he deployed to Eagle Base, Bosnia, where he served as the detachment sergeant for a Combat Stress Control Detachment in support of SFOR6. From October 2005 to November 2006, he deployed to Abu Ghraib, Iraq, where he served as a member of the Behavioral Science Consultation Team (BSCT) in support of the Joint Interrogation and Debriefing Center (JIDC) during Operation Iraqi Freedom.
He deployed again to Victory Base, Iraq, from September 2009 to September 2010 as the first sergeant for the 550th Area Support Medical Company. While serving as the command sergeant major for the 10th Combat Support Hospital in December 2015, he deployed to Camp Arifjan, Kuwait, where he served as the command sergeant major for the U.S. Military Hospital-Kuwait for nine months. His succeeding assignment was as the 30th Medical Brigade command sergeant major.
“Throughout my career, I’ve always appreciated the quality of food, professional service and low prices commissaries offered. In fact, I mostly took these things for granted because they were always there for me,” Baller said. “I want to ensure that this benefit will continue for our deserving patrons, that I serve as a faithful liaison, and that our employees know that they are ‘heroes’ in my book, especially after all we’ve gone through recently.”
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About DeCA: The Defense Commissary Agency operates a worldwide chain of commissaries providing groceries to military personnel, retirees and their families in a safe and secure shopping environment. Commissaries provide a military benefit, saving authorized patrons thousands of dollars annually on their purchases compared to similar products at commercial retailers. The discounted prices include a 5-percent surcharge, which covers the costs of building new commissaries and modernizing existing ones. A core military family support element, and a valued part of military pay and benefits, commissaries contribute to family readiness, enhance the quality of life for America’s military and their families, and help recruit and retain the best and brightest men and women to serve their country.