WELCOME TO WEST VIRGINIA BRIDGE RIDE: THE 65 ARE HOME.
Cpt Benjamin Joseph “BJ” Ronk
December 26th marks the anniversary of the passing of Cpt Benjamin Joseph “BJ” Ronk. US Army, 42, We honor and remember him, his family, and his mother Belinda Jividen of Kenova WV.
He was born Feb 16, 1973. He passed away on December 26, 2015, in Clarksville, Tenn.
Benjamin went to grade and high school in Ceredo Kenova where he was known as BJ, although he graduated from Seaside High School in California.
Over a period marking nearly 25 years, Captain Ronk served his country in varying capacities in uniform. He served eight years in Active Duty as an enlisted soldier, earning the rank of Sergeant, from 1991 to 1999. Through his enlistment he served as a Satellite Communications System Operator-Maintainer in various assignments, including a tour with the White House Office.
Benjamin commissioned as a warrant officer in 1999 after being selected to attend the Rotary Wing Aviator Course at Fort Rucker, Alabama, serving another 12 years and seven months Active Duty from 1999 to 2012 as a UH-60 Pilot. During this time, he successfully completed the UH-60 Instructor Pilot Course (2004) to become an instructor pilot at the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence.
Benjamin attended the Physician Assistant Course and Army Flight Surgeon Primary Course in 2012 before commissioning as a First Lieutenant to serve his first assignment as a medical provider at 6th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. He completed his career as the 501st Area Support Medical Company Treatment Platoon Physician Assistant with the 86th Combat Support Hospital.
His current term of service was to expire in March 2016. During these periods of service, overseas and temporary duty locations included: Korea (1993-1994 and 2001-2002); Afghanistan, "Operation Enduring Freedom" (2002-2003); Iraq, "Operation Iraqi Freedom" (2004-2005 and 2005-2006); and Liberia, "Operation United Assistance" (2015).
Benjamin’s mother Belinda Jividen of Kenova, West Virginia stated, “He was my baby and I’ve always been proud of him but even more so when his best friend who flew with him in Afghanistan said Benjamin would land his helicopter in places no one else would go ‘because he wasn’t leaving anyone behind.”
“Benjamin was getting ready to retire in three months after serving 25 years when he died. He lived in Clarksville, TN. He loved playing the guitar and anything to do with music. He could hear a tune and pick it out by ear. He also loved camping and kayaking with his son, Dylan. He was also a very good cook (I have his recipes but can’t bring myself to use them yet). Benjamin liked to surprise me, coming home to visit without telling me, buying me a beautiful necklace he picked out himself for my 60th. He would look at me with a look of love when I called him my baby (never got upset when I did.) He loved to see Dylan & me playing or just being together. He called Tennessee home.”
Shared by his mother, Belinda:
“When he first told me that he was going to join the army, I wasn’t happy,” said his mother, Belinda Jividen. “I wasn’t happy, but through the years I felt like that it was probably a good thing that he had joined.” When the war in Iraq started, he was in one of the first units that went over to the conflict. “He was one of the first ones that went over as a medevac helicopter pilot. And every day I prayed, and I said, Lord, I’m no different than any other mother, and he’s no different than any other child but he’s mine,” she said.
“It’s important to remember and to teach our children that freedom is not free. People give their lives so that we can do what we’re doing now, and he is one of those. I couldn’t be prouder of him. He accomplished a lot in his life, and I just want to honor him,” she said.
Honoring the fallen by keeping their memories and legacies alive is now her mission as a Gold Star mother. “As a Gold Star mother, we have a saying. A person dies twice, the first-time physical death and the second time when no one says their name. So, I’m going to tell you that I am the proud mother of Captain Benjamin Joseph Ronk,” she said.
Besides his mother, this gallant soldier is missed by his father Joseph Ronk, his son Dylan James Ronk, and many other relatives and friends who loved him.
Let us always remember him and….
Say His Name
#neverforget #SayTheirNames #rememberthefallen #GoldStarMothers #goldstarfamilies #GoldStar #goldstarbridgeride #Army #armyaviation
SSG Darren D. VanKomen
33, US Army
December 21 marks the anniversary of the passing of SSG Darren D. VanKomen, 33, US Army of Bluefield WV. We honor and remember him, his family, and his mother Betty Clemens of Orofino, Washington.
He was born May 2nd 1971. Darren grew up in Idaho, the youngest of 10 children, and joined the Army after graduating from high school. He had recently been promoted and re-enlisted for another six years.
SSG VanKomen was assigned to 2nd Squadron, 14th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 25th Infantry Division (Stryker Brigade Combat Team), Fort Lewis, Wash. He was killed Dec. 21 2004 in Mosul, Iraq while serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom when a suicide bomber entered his dining facility and detonated an improvised explosive device
Darren was born in Bluefield, West Virginia but grew up in Lewiston, Idaho. He enlisted in the military in 1991, a few years after graduating from Culdesac High School in Idaho. He was stationed in West Virginia and Colorado before coming to Fort Lewis for a second time. Twice, he left the army, to explore life as a civilian. Twice he returned, after missing the structure and purpose of the military. "He liked everything about it. He literally felt like he could make a difference," said sister-in-law Stephanie VanKomen of Orofino, Idaho. "He was right where he wanted to be," said his sister-in-law, Andrea VanKomen, of Puyallup. "He was really dedicated to serving his country."
When Darren was in his late teens, he invented the word "zerbert" to mean "hugs and kisses." It was a word he never outgrew. Years later, when he became a military man, he would blurt out "Zerbert to you!" to his mother and sister and they would smile. He doted on his large family of six brothers and two sisters and was the uncle who played basketball and blind man's bluff with the kids. He was tall and funny, liked to draw pictures of cartoon characters and Conan the Barbarian, and he loved the military.
"Sgt. V", as most of his comrades called him _ was known for his perfectionism and painstaking attention to detail. He had recently been promoted and re-enlisted for another six years. VanKomen could not resist telling his wife, who has multiple sclerosis, by e-mail what he had gotten her for Christmas: a heated massage pad and a computer game. The gifts arrived the same day she learned of his death.
Moments after Stephaine VanKomen met a handsome soldier named Darren, she told her sister-in-law she would marry him. "She thought I was crazy. I didn't even know his first name," Stephaine said. Nevertheless, he called her for a date the same day and they went out later that night. They were married six months later.
He doted on his wife, Stephaine, and 12-year-old stepdaughter, Chelsea, with gifts of perfume and video games. He was a very loving father and husband. A half-hour before Stephaine learned of his death, she opened the door to a package of Christmas presents he had sent home.
A Stryker Brigade unit supply specialist, Darren had been planning to take Stephaine to Italy for their 10-year anniversary, but first, he had a tour of duty in Iraq.
Darren is also survived by 6 brothers and 2 sisters.
Let us remember him, his family, and….
Say His Name
#neverforget #SayTheirNames #GoldStarMothers #goldstarfamilies #GoldStar #goldstarbridgeride #army #armystryker #rememberthefallen
