Blaine Anthony DeBoard Jr., was born on November 7, 1945 to Mr. and Mrs. Blaine A. DeBoard Sr. of West Chester, Pennsylvania.  The family lived in Grove, a small community just north of West Chester.  Blaine was their only child.  His father served in the Army in World War II, in the European Theater.

Blaine graduated in 1963 from Henderson High School located at Lincoln and Montgomery Avenues. 

The school yearbook says:

"Butch…lots of fun…outdoor type…hobbies- girls and horses…some character…
What lies ahead?"

 

 

Blaine joined the Marine Corps October 13, 1965.  He received 8 weeks of basic training at Parris Island, South Carolina.  He was then assigned to Camp Lejeune, North Carolina for four weeks of individual combat training and 4 weeks of specialist training.

Blaine was assigned to the Headquarters and Supply Company, 3rd Battalion, 3^rd Marine Regiment, 3^rd Marine Division.

Blaine’s unit was shipped overseas to Vietnam in March 1966.  His unit operated in the Quang Tri area of central Vietnam, very close to the Demilitarized Zone, located on one of the main North South highways of the country.  The area saw some of the fiercest combat in 1966.

On December 28^th at 2:55 p.m., Blaine was injured by an enemy explosive device (probably a mortar or artillery round) while defending his base.

Bruce Swander, a Vietnam Researcher contributes the following on Blaine:

 LCpl Blaine De Board was attached to "Triple-Trey".....Headquarters Company, 3rd Battalion, 3rd Regiment, 3rd Marine Division.  By the end of 1966, they had moved into an area dubbed the 'Rockpile' in Quang Tri Province just below the demilitarized zone.  Like other small areas of real-estate, the Rockpile would be an area of contention that would be lost/won numerous times as the war waned on.

 Trained as an Anti-Tank Assault man, he would be part of a headquarters command group called Alpha - a specially-trained group of Marines providing the heavy weapon support needed for the grunts in the field.

 The early part of the week before New Years 1966 was eerily quiet.  The search/destroy Companies met with some regular contact of the enemy NVA, and plans were already being made to celebrate their survival so far as 1967 approached.

 Their world would be shattered on 28 Dec 1966.  Starting at minutes after 5PM, the enemy forces started to rain mortars into the Battalion Command Post.  Explosions erupted everywhere, and it would take almost 3 hours for 3/3 to determine the NVA locations and quell the attack.

 Two Marines had been killed instantly - 42 had been wounded and evacuated out to the nearest field hospital.  LCpl Blaine De Board would die of wounds he sustained the previous night on 12/29/66 - one other Marine would die of wounds on 12/30.

Lance Corporal Blaine Anthony DeBoard Jr. Died Of Wounds on December 29, 1966.

Funeral services were held in North Carolina, where his parents then lived.