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In Memory of U.S. Army Private First Class

Raymond Lee Sip

Bonesteel, South Dakota, Gregory County

 March 21, 1943 –January 5, 1969

Killed in Action in Vietnam

Raymond Lee Sip was born on March 21, 1943, to George and Millie (Kortmeyer) Sip in Geddes, South Dakota. He had one sister, Melva. His hometown was Bonesteel, South Dakota. He graduated from Bonsteel High School in 1961 and Southern State College in 1967. After graduation because of a shortage of teachers, Raymond was a business/drama teacher for one year at Bonesteel High School. Raymond married Mavis Roberts in Stickney, South Dakota on June 1, 1968. Raymond is remembered as “always smiling” and that he “loved life.” He also “enjoyed hunting, fishing, and helping parents at their family owned locker plant.” His nephews, Dwaine and David, and niece, DeAnne, were his “pride and joy.”

On June 12, 1968, Raymond Lee Sip was drafted into the Army. He was trained at Fort Lewis, Washington. He was sent overseas to Vietnam on November 21, 1968 as a Private First Class, Company C, 3rd Battalion, 47th Infantry, 9th Infantry Division.

Private Raymond Lee Sip was killed in action on January 5, 1969. His parents received a telegram that read: “the Secretary of the Army has asked me to express his deep regret that your son, Private First Class Raymond Sip died in Vietnam on 5 January 69 as a result of wound received while on combat operation when hit by fragment from a short friend artillery round directed as a hostile force.” The following is a letter from G.O. Hillard III, Captain, that provided further details:

I extend my most profound sympathy to you on the recent loss of your husband,
PFC Raymond L. Sip, US 56 566 330, Company C, 3rd Battalion, 47th Infantry, 9th
Infantry Division, who died in the service of his country on the fifth of January 1969.

On the morning of the Fifth of January, Raymond was with his company on a
reconnaissance in force operation in Kien Hoa Province, Republic of Vietnam,
when he was hit by fragments from a friendly artillery round directed at hostile
forces. It may be of some comfort to know that the death came quickly.

The body of Private Sip was returned to the United States on January 8, 1969. Private Raymond Sip was buried with military honors in Pleasant View Cemetery in Geddes on January 21, 1969. His father, George Sip, and mother, Millie Sip, have since been laid to rest next to him.

He was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, the Purple Heart, the National Defense Service Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal, Good Conduct Medal, and the Expert Rifle Marksman Rifle.

His current survivors are his widow, Mavis Roberts Dalton, Waverly, Nebraska and his sister and brother-in-law, Norman and Melva Davis, Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Also surviving him are his nephews, Dwaine Davis and David Davis, and his niece, DeAnne (Davis) Rechtenbaugh. Ray’s mother, Millie, passed away on August 12, 2005.

Raymond’s family said the following in closing: “What a loss for all who loved him. He was a loving son for 25 years, a loving husband for 7 months, a caring teacher for 1 year, and a friend to all who knew him.”

Photo left: Mavis receiving Ray’s awards; center: Mavis and Ray’s marriage; Right: Raymond’s father, mother, Ray, and sister, Melva

This entry was respectfully submitted by Suzanne Ryan, 8th Grade student, Spearfish Middle School, Spearfish, South Dakota, October12, 2005. Information for this entry was submitted by Mavis Dalton, widow, Waverly, Nebraska, The Gregory Times, January 16, 1969 and January 23, 1969 issues. Profile approval by Mavis Dalton.