Mike Strojny was born in 1946 in Maryland. He graduated from Duval High School in Lanham Seabrook, Maryland, in 1964, and from the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Mississippi, with a Bachelor's of Science degree in Business Administration in 1968. Strojny was commissioned a 2d Lt in the U.S. Army Reserve on November 12, 1968, and went on active duty beginning December 17, 1968. He completed the Signal Officer Basic Course, Airborne Training, and the Special Forces Officer Course before serving for a year in the Republic of Vietnam. Lt Strojny left active duty on August 27, 1971, and served in the Army Reserve until February 11, 1972, when he joined the Mississippi Army National Guard. After over 26 years in uniform, Col Strojny retired from the Mississippi Army National Guard on March 9, 1995. After leaving active duty in 1971, Mike and his wife Jane started Strojny & Strojny Financial Services in Biloxi, Mississippi, in 1975. He also later received a Master's Degree in Education from the University of Southern Mississippi, taught school in the Biloxi Public School System, and earned his private pilot's license.

Ballad Of The Green Berets

Fighting soldiers from the sky
Fearless men who jump and die
Men who mean just what they say
The brave men of the Green Berets
Silver wings upon their chests
These are men, America's best
One hundred men will test today
But only three win the Green Beret
Trained to live off nature's land
Trained to combat hand-to-hand
Men who fight by night and day
Courage taken from the Green Beret
Silver wings upon their chests
These are men, America's best
One hundred men will test today
But only three win the Green Beret
Back at home a young wife waits
Her Green Beret has met his fate
He has died for those oppressed
Leaving her this last request
Put Silver Wings on my son's chest
Make him one of America's best
He'll be a man they'll test one day
Have him win the Green Beret