Ron Dedels was born and raised in Southern California. He attended UCLA in their NROTC program and served 6 years in the Navy, aboard a nuclear submarine as a navigator and combat officer aboard a frigate and two years as an exchange officer with the Canadian Navy in Nova Scotia. After 35 years with Cardinal Health in sales, marketing, and business analytics leadership he retired to Reynolds with his wife Jenny. They have 2 children and 4 grandchildren.