Rolland Carroll Burdge

Rolland (Ron) Carroll Burdge was born on June 3, 1926, in Willard, Ohio to Harold Leroy Burdge and Edith Viola Edwards Burdge. He was the youngest of two sons.

Prior to his graduation from high school, Ron discovered that the military was offering a Specialized Training Program for 17-year-old young men who could pass an I.Q. test at a certain level. The results of the tests made him eligible to enlist in the military and enroll in a Specialized Engineering Training Program. He enlisted in the Army on August 3, 1943.

He began his active duty in Ft. Benjamin Harrison on June 3, 1944, his birthday. On July 6, 1944, he left for Camp Stewart in Georgia. He was on a train carrying 1,000 new Army recruits traveling South on the L&N Railroad when tragedy struck. This wreck was believed to be the second worst Stateside Military Disaster of World War II.

Ron, miraculously, was spared any injury in this crash and continued his military service. He was assigned to the third platoon, Company A, First Battalion, 409th Regiment of the 103rd Infantry Division (the Cactus Division) of the United States Army from February 19th – July 27th, 1945. The 103rd Infantry Division was recognized as a liberating unit by the U.S. Army's Center of Military History and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 1985.

He was transferred to the 9th Infantry Division from July 27th – June 18th, 1946, until he returned to the US.

In 1957 Ron was offered a position as the Assistant Manager of a new subsidiary for his employer, in Panama City, Panama which he accepted. It was here he met Eneida Lizarraga-Garcia. They were married in August of 1960.

Ron and Eneida were married for 32 years during which time they had seven children: Michele (Gary), Eric (Tally), Aaron (Trina), Suzanne, Greg (Danielle), Jonathan (Lee), and Nicole (Josh). They have 20 grandchildren together. The family lived in Houston, TX, Salt Lake City, UT, Falls Church, VA, Kensington, MD, and then returned to the former Canal Zone in Panama where Ron worked up to the position of the Chief of the Rates & Analysis Branch. In 1981, the family returned to the United States to settle in the Seattle, WA area.

Following a divorce in 1993, Ron was accepted into the Peace Corps and became a Small Business Advisor in Lithuania. After returning to the US, he met and married Joyce Hanks. They were married for nearly 20 years and served 2 missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints before Joyce lost her battle with cancer.

Ron met Betty Wetzel online in late 2015 and married on February 23, 2016. They were married for 7 years during which time they traveled extensively including visits to Australia, Panama, and Alaska. They were wonderful companions to each other until Betty passed away on June 8, 2023.

Ron lived just 3 weeks longer and died on June 29, 2023, peacefully in his sleep.

Ron was known for his talent with budgets and numbers, and his service to his country, his church, and his family. He was also widely traveled and enjoyed discovering new adventures in faraway countries.

Ron is preceded in death by his parents and his brother, Cleland Arthur Burdge, along with his wives. He leaves behind his 7 children and their spouses, his 20 grandchildren, and 14 great-grandchildren.

A viewing will be held at Russon Mortuary, 295 Main St, Bountiful, UT on Monday, July 10, 2023, from 10:00 – 11:00AM. Immediately following the viewing, graveside services will be held Monday, July 10, 2023, at the Utah Veterans Cemetery & Memorial Park, 17111 1700 W, Bluffdale, UT with full military honors at 12:00PM.

In lieu of flowers the family asks donations be made in Ron’s memory to the Wounded Warrior Project or the Tunnel To Towers Foundation through their websites.