Vietnam Veteran – Fire Support Base Burt
Private First Class Ronnie Edsel Ballard
United States Army
Company C, 3rd Battalion, 22nd Infantry Regiment
25th Infantry Division
Born: July 4, 1947
Home of Record: Missouri
Killed in Action: January 2, 1968
Location: Fire Support Base Burt (Suối Cụt), Tây Ninh Province, South Vietnam
Service and Sacrifice
Private First Class Ronnie Edsel Ballard was a young American infantryman serving with the 25th Infantry Division, a unit that bore some of the heaviest fighting of the Vietnam War.
On the night of January 1–2, 1968, PFC Ballard and his fellow soldiers manned the perimeter of Fire Support Base Burt, a key U.S. artillery position near the Cambodian border. What was supposed to be a New Year’s truce turned into a massive enemy assault when North Vietnamese and Viet Cong forces launched a coordinated, multi-wave attack against the base.
Under intense mortar fire, rocket-propelled grenades, and direct ground assaults, American soldiers fought through the night to hold the perimeter. During this brutal engagement, PFC Ronnie Edsel Ballard was killed in action, giving his life while defending his fellow soldiers and the artillery positions that supported operations throughout the region.
He was born on 20 August 1947. According to our records, Arkansas was his home or enlistment state, and Randolph County is included in the archival record. We have Warm Springs listed as his city. During his service in the Vietnam War, Army Private First Class Ballard experienced a traumatic event which ultimately resulted in loss of life on 2 January 1968. Recorded circumstances attributed to: Died through hostile action .. multiple fragmentation wounds. Incident location: Fsb Burt Soui-cut, South Vietnam, Tay Ninh province.
He was just 20 years old.
Legacy
He was born on 20 August 1947. According to our records, Arkansas was his home or enlistment state, and Randolph County is included in the archival record. We have Warm Springs listed as his city. During his service in the Vietnam War, Army Private First Class Ballard experienced a traumatic event which ultimately resulted in loss of life on 2 January 1968. Recorded circumstances attributed to: Died through hostile action .. multiple fragmentation wounds. Incident location: Fsb Burt Soui-cut, South Vietnam, Tay Ninh province.
PFC Ballard’s name is permanently engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, standing among those who paid the ultimate price during the war. His sacrifice is inseparable from the story of Fire Support Base Burt, a battle that foreshadowed the Tet Offensive and revealed the actual intensity of the conflict heading into 1968.
He represents the countless young Americans who never returned home, whose final moments were spent holding the line for others.
Coolbeaners Appreciation
Today, mickyspano.com/ and The Micky Spano Show honor:
Private First Class Ronnie Edsel Ballard
United States Army
Vietnam War
Killed in Action — Fire Support Base Burt
January 2, 1968
We remember his courage.
We speak his name.
And we ensure his sacrifice is never forgotten.
Honoring a Veteran of the Day — every single day.
Leave a Reply