by Sgt. Michael Ellis

I seldom create things to please other people; I normally create things with the mindset that I’m making something that I would want to display in my own home,” said the man with many accolades and awarding-winning pieces adorning the walls around his drafting table.

Before retiring in 2010, then Master Sgt. Cody Vance was the last active-duty Air Force graphic illustrator; the career field being eliminated three years prior. Today, he continues serving the Air Force as a medical illustrator at the 59th Medical Wing, and the community with his award-winning and still-emerging artistic abilities.