About Big Mountain Coaching
We all work in with people, and on teams — in our jobs, in school, in our communities and families.
But we don’t always trust each other.
Success requires trust.
Effective, inspiring leaders build trust.
Our goal at Big Mountain Coaching is to help individuals, teams, and companies develop trust through leadership development.
“Coaching is my calling.” It’s Dr. Marella (Mary) Big Mountain’s “why.” She founded Big Mountain Coaching to create a place where we can all learn, reflect, and practice leadership.
For those who need a little extra help, her proven coaching and consulting services build leadership skills for individuals and teams.
“Mary’s willingness to take on new challenges while inspiring others to action is amazing and fun to be involved in. Her diverse, non-standard background (flying planes, leading people airborne, speaking Spanish and Russian, traveling the world) has developed Mary into an impressive leader that can connect with all types of diverse people and groups while leading them to a common goal. She was a joy to work with!”
Lieutenant Colonel Marella Tobolt Big Mountain
Lt Col Big Mountain is an instructor of Honors classes and an Assistant Professor of Aerospace Studies for Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) Detachment 028, at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Prescott, Arizona where she uses her doctorate in Applied Leadership to instruct and mentor our next generation of military leaders.
Lt Col Big Mountain received her commission from the Officer Training School in 1999. She earned her pilot wings from Specialized Undergraduate Pilot Training, Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi in May 1999 where she graduated with academic distinction.
She served as a C-130 pilot both at the 36th Airlift Squadron at Yokota Air Force base and the 2nd Airlift Squadron at Pope AFB, North Carolina gaining operational experience in Southeast Asia and in the Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom AOR.
In 2005, Lt Big Mountain transitioned to the Air Force reserves where she served as a foreign clearance overflight specialist and an airlift director of operations at the Tanker Airlift Control Center Air Operations Center. She volunteered to use her foreign language skill of Russian and deploy to serve as the Chief of Military Cooperation in Tashkent, Uzbekistan earning the Air Force CGO of the Year Award for her revitalization efforts of regional diplomatic ties and the Northern Distribution Network.
Prior to her current position, she was the deputy division chief of analysis and assessments for the Profession of Arms Center of Excellence (PACE), the Air Force's newest Center of Excellences charged to realign our culture with our Air Force Core Values.
Lt Col Big Mountain was recognized as the region’s “Instructor of the Quarter”, Embry-Riddle’s "SGA Faculty of the Semester” in the Spring of 2017, and the "Field Grade Officer of the Quarter" for the entire Air University in the 1st Quarter of 2018.
Lt Col Big Mountain holds a Doctorate of Strategic and Applied Leadership, Leadership Coaching and Applied Leadership from Regent University. She also has a Master’s Degree, Political Science, and International Relations, from Webster University and a Bachelor of Arts Degree, Economics and Spanish, from University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.
News, Awards & Meetups
Leadership Mastermind Group
Emery-Riddle Aeronautical University staff meets Hopi students - Navajo-Hopi Observers, April 5, 2017
Embry-Riddle Faculty Member of the Semester, Spring 2017