16 Jun 2007 Kenneth was a San Angelo, Texas native, born and spent most of his years there. He attended Lake View Kigh School in San Angelo, was married and moved to Perry, Oklahoma, because he could not be married and play sports in Texas high schools. He was an All State Running Back at Perry High School his senior year and led the State of Oklahoma in scoring for the school year 1964-65. He received a scholarship to Conner Junior College in Warner, Oklahoma and attended one semester. His marriage ended and he enlisted in the Marine Corps in January 1966. He attained the rank of Corporal E-4 within one year and began his tour in Vietnam in Febuary 1967. While assigned to the Headquarters and Service Company, he was awaiting a permanent assignment as a squad leader within one of the line companies. He was on a patrol on February 16, 1967 within days of arriving in the Battalion and he was killed by a land mine explosion. He was buried with full military honors at the Fairmont Cemetery in his home town of San Angelo, Texas. He was survived by his daughter, Gina Lynn of Perry, Oklahoma; his father, two brothers and a sister, all of San Angelo; and by his mother of Los Angeles, California. He is remembered by the Concho Valley Vietnam Memorial in San Angelo and by the Permian Basin Vietnam Veterans' Memorial in Midland, Texas. From a PBVVM representative, Billy M. Brown 4015 Melody Lane, Odessa, Texas 79762 bmbrown@grandecom.net

 

A Note from The Virtual Wall A Marine Battalion Landing Team is built around an infantry battalion and contains a variety of combat and combat support elements - usually an artillery battery; a platoon each of tanks, combat engineers, amphibious tractors, and motor transport; and smaller detachments of other troops. BLT 1/4 was no different; although nicknamed after its infantry battalion (1st Bn, 4th Marines) BLT 1/4 had just as many troops belonging to other units. One detachment was from the Scout/Sniper Platoon, HQ Company, 26th Marines. Beginning at 8 AM, 16 February 1967 BLT 1/4 conducted an amphibious assault in the coastal area halfway between Tam Quan and Duc Pho. Operation DECKHOUSE IV's first casualty occurred shortly after noon and is addressed in two entries in the BLT 1/4 Command Chronology for Feb 1967, one in the narrative summary and one in the operations log: The Marine killed by the mine was Corporal Kenneth Russell.

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