Purple Heart Recipients To Be Honored At Lawrenceburg Fall Fest

Eagle Country 99.3 thanks these individuals for their service.

Jordan Bondurant, Ken Nelson, Ben Houze Jr., and George Klopp Sr. Photos provided. 

(Lawrenceburg, Ind.) - In what has become an annual tradition, three Purple Heart recipients and a World War II Veteran will be honored at Lawrenceburg Fall Fest.

The Purple Heart Salute will take place Friday, September 28 at approximately 8:15 p.m. on the main stage in the Lawrenceburg Community Center parking lot.

The ceremony will happen in between musical performances from Walker Hayes and Friday night’s headliner Dwight Yoakam.

This year’s honorees are Jordan R. Bondurant, Ben Houze Jr., George E. Klopp Sr., and Ken Nelson. 

Bio's for each of the Purple Heart recipients are listed below:

Jordan R. Bondurant - was born in Lawrenceburg, Indiana on June 6, 1996 and raised by his mother, Janelle Bondurant. He is the youngest of three children. Older brother, Brett, is an Army war hero who was injured in Afghanistan and received the Purple Heart.  He also has a sister, Lindsee. Jordan graduated from South Dearborn High School in 2014 and entered the U.S. Army that year.  He took basic training at Ft. Benning, GA and then was sent to Ft. Hood, TX for AIT. Jordan was a proud member of the Third Cavalry Regiment. He was then deployed to Afghanistan and assigned to Helmand Province.  It is located between the Helmand and Arghandab Rivers. Population of the area is approximately 200,000.  He was wounded in action by enemy combatants on October 29, 2016 at Lashkar Gah which is also called Bost and located in Southern Afghanistan. Jordan was a Specialist or Sp/4 and was medically retired from the U.S. Army on October 10, 2017. Jordan’s grandpa, Jerry Bondurant, was a member of the 101st Airborne, the Screamin’ Eagles, during the Vietnam War.  Great Grandpa, Charles W. Bondurant, was a World War II Navy Veteran. Jordan loves to hunt and fish and spend time with his 4 nieces. The family has an outstanding history of being American Patriots. Jordan was proud to carry on this family tradition and is also proud of his service to our nation.

Ben Houze Jr. - was born in Aurora, Indiana on April 25, 1949 to Ben Sr. and Betty (Donley) Houze.  He grew up on Johnson Street in Aurora and attended the old Southside Grade School. Ben had three brothers, David Allen, Gary Wayne and Steve along with two sisters, Pamela and Brenda. Ben moved from Aurora to Northern Kentucky after finishing his 8th grade year and attended Holmes High School where he was a member of the Class of 1966. Ben entered the United States Marine Corps on July 11, 1966 and started Boot Camp at San Diego, California.  He then was sent to Camp Pendleton and after training there was sent to Vietnam where he served two tours of duty.  While serving at An Hoa Combat Base in Quang Nam Province, Ben was wounded during a fierce battle with the North Vietnamese Army.  He suffered shrapnel wounds from an enemy grenade on August 19, 1969 while serving with Battery E, Second Battalion, Eleventh Marines, when a sapper platoon supported by mortars, rockets, small arms and automatic weapons fire, attacked the base.  Although wounded, Ben refused medical treatment and continued to battle the enemy and kept securing more ammunition for his fellow Marines.  When a fellow Marine was wounded, Ben ran through a hail of enemy fire to rescue him and return him to safety.  For these actions, Ben was awarded the Silver Star.  Lance Corporal Houze had lived up to the tradition of being a United States Marine. In addition to the Silver Star and Purple Heart, Ben was awarded the National Defense Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm, Combat Action Ribbon, Presidential Unit Citation, Meritorious Unit Citation and Expert Rifleman Badge.  He was discharged on August 25, 1970 at Camp Lejeune. Ben worked at Melvin Liquid for over 20 years. Ben has four children:  Shona, Sheila, Gary and Brian, along with 6 grandchildren (Ethan, Luke, Skylar, Mason, Jessica and Jacob) and 1 great grandchild, Aiden.  Today, he resides in Newtonsville, Ohio.  Ben was inducted into the Ohio Military Hall of Fame in 2017 and was presented with the Ohio Medal of Valor and certificates honoring him as an American Hero. Ben was presented with a Life Membership in the Southeastern Indiana Lary D. Fogle Chapter 71 of the Vietnam Veterans of America and one of their green jackets worn by chapter members. Ben served 4 years, 2 months and 7 days on active duty and proved himself as a combat wounded Marine.  He is very proud of his service to our great nation and supports those serving today.

George E. Klopp Sr. - was born on April 13, 1926 in Lawrenceburg, IN to Herman and Frances Klopp.  George attended St. Lawrence Grade School and was in the LCHS Class of 1944.  He attends St. Lawrence Church in Lawrenceburg. George entered the United States Navy in 1944 and took his basic training at the Great Lakes Naval Facility.  He served in the South Pacific for 22 months where he received the Asiatic-Pacific Medal, Navy Good Conduct Medal, World War II Victory Medal, American Campaign Medal and American Defense Medal.  He was discharged as a 3rd Class Petty Officer Electrician’s Mate.  George married his wife, Patsy, in 1949,  They had one son, George E. Jr. and have two grandchildren, George D. and Allison.  He has two great grandchildren, Corbin and Morgan. He had four brothers: Ray, Gary, George, and Gene, who was a World War II Veteran and Carl, who was also a WWII Veteran and Korean War Veteran. George has been an active member of  American Legion Post # 239 for over 70 years and a faithful member of the Color Guard for over 50 years until he was unable to continue.  In 2009, George went on an Honor Flight from Southeastern Indiana and was one of the four wreath presenters at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, along with Dick Horn, Buddy Foster and Clyde Myers. At age 92, George is still an active walker and can be seen walking around Greendale and in area 5K races. George retired from Thatcher Glass after over 30 years of service. He has dedicated his life to his family and to fellow veterans, especially with his Color Guard duties to help pay that final respect to a deceased veteran.  He found it rewarding to help with the firing of the three volleys, presenting the American Flag to the family and the playing of TAPS.  He is proud of his service to our great nation as well as the service of his brothers.

Ken Nelson - was born in Cincinnati on January 27, 1945 to Ray and Phyllis Nelson.  He grew up with his brother, Timothy, and four sisters, Frankye, Linda, Doris and Becky. He graduated from Hamilton Catholic High School in 1963 and then attended Eastern Kentucky University where he graduated in 1967. He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant and entered the United States Army on January 31, 1968 and served until January 30, 1968. He was sent to Vietnam where he was assigned to the 25th Infantry Division at Tay Ninh during 1968-69.  He was a Platoon Leader with the 4/23 rd Mechanized Infantry and was wounded by shrapnel from enemy fire on June 27, 1968 and was awarded a Purple Heart. He saw heavy action during his time in Vietnam and was awarded several medals.  Some of them are: National Defense Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal, Vietnam Service Medal with four bronze stars, the Bronze Star with “V” for valor, Army Commendation Medal, Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm, Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Honor Medal First Class, Meritorious Unit Citation, Presidential Unit Citation, Expert Badge for rifle and pistol, Parachute Badge and the Combat Infantryman’s Badge.  Ken was also awarded the Silver Star, our nation’s 3rd highest award for gallantry in action with one oak leaf cluster, which denotes a second award of this prestigious and highly coveted award. Ken and his wife, Connie, have been married for 38 years and live in Moores Hill.  They have six children: boys, Kristopher, Tom, Bobby and Andy.  They have two daughters: Krista and Amanda.  There are 14 grandchildren. Ken worked as the Economic Development Director for Fairfield, OH and then became a private contractor. Ken is a True American Hero and highly decorated.  He is proud of his service to our great nation.