Senate Approves Bill to Rename Post Office for Iraq Hero

Heroes shouldn't be forgotten. Now the legacy of one Mountain View soldier will live on.

This Friday morning the United States Senate signed a bill introduced by Rep. Anna G. Eshoo (D-Palo Alto) to designate and rename the Hope Street post office the "Lieutenant Kenneth N. Ballard Memorial Post Office."

This final act by Congress means the bill now moves on to the president to be signed into law.

"When duty called, Lt. Ballard answered for his country," Eshoo said in a statement. "He was brave, courageous and a hero. For his service, he should be remembered and honored by our community."

His mother Karen Meredith happily welcomed the news.

"Ken did not get to live his life fully and I think this is a good legacy to leave the place where he grew up," she said, add her appreciation for the City of Mountain View's support. "People will ask and people will know that there are troops fighting all over the world. Ken was one of them and he paid the ultimate price."

Born in 1977 in native of Rome, NY, Ballard moved to Mountain View in 1981. A graduate of the Mountain View High School Class of 1995, he enlisted in the Army and attended basic training at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Afterward Ballard served in Germany, Bosnia, Macedonia, and Iraq.

Ballard won the Gold to Green Army ROTC Scholarship and attended Middle Tennessee State University. After graduation he returned to Germany and was then deployed to Iraq. On May 30, 2004, Lieutenant Ballard was killed in Najaf, Iraq by accidental discharge of the M-240 weapon mounted on his vehicle.

Rep. Eshoo’s bill garnered the support of the entire California Congressional delegation, the Mountain View City Council and passed by unanimous consent in the Senate.

Related stories:

• Fallen Army Soldier Might Get Name on Post Office
• Council OKs Support For Post Office Name
• Eshoo Presents Bill to Rename Post Office After Fallen Army Officer

How do you feel about this announcement? Do you think Mountain View could do more to honor its fallen soldiers? Tell us in comments!

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