Obituary

Laura Ruth Hindman Balch, 92, formerly of Chattanooga, died February 25, 2009, at a nursing home in Reston, VA. She was born in Beaverdale, PA in 1917, the daughter of Thomas F. and Larkey Boucher Hindman, Ruth grew up in Johnstown, PA, the fourth of ten children. She graduated in 1939 from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing in Philadelphia and joined the Army Nurse Corps in 1940 as a surgical nurse. When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, enlisted nurses were told they would serve in the Army for the duration of the war. Ruth then volunteered for an overseas assignment, joining the 2nd Auxiliary Surgical Group with the U.S. Fifth Army under General Mark Clark. The Group traveled from Louisiana to New York City on a train with the windows blacked out, then boarded the British ship Andes and sailed to Casablanca, Morocco. There they lived in tents on the Sultan’s Race Track at Rabat, performing surgery, learning French, map reading, use of gas masks, and how to use one helmet full of water daily for bathing and washing clothes.

Ruth was assigned to an orthopedic surgical team, which met up with the British 95th General (Hospital) in Algiers and subsequently traveled from one field hospital to another across Italy to treat wounded soldiers. The surgical team operated in tents, standing in the mud and braving cold weather and enemy shelling. A German doctor, who was a prisoner of war, told them he was amazed they were located so close to the front lines of battle. At one field hospital near Bizerte Bob Hope entertained the troops; at another the famed Life Magazine photographer Margaret Bourke-White spent time with Ruth and the other nurses, chronicling their adventures in her book Purple Heart Valley. Ruth and her team witnessed significant World War II battles, including the Allies’ bombing of Monte Casino and the invasions of Anzio, Naples, and Salerno, Italy. The surgical team was assigned to two British Hospital ships stationed off the coast of Salerno, Italy. The Germans bombed both ships and they sunk, and each time Ruth was lucky to survive. For wounds received in action, she was awarded the Purple Heart . She also received the Bronze Star for meritorious service that included training surgical technicians and shock teams in the field. Ruth’s World War II experiences were highlighted in a book And If I Perish: Frontline U.S. Army Nurses by Evelyn Monahan and Rosemary Niedel-Greenlee (2004). Ruth was also honored to be included in a PBS documentary A Testament to Freedom, sponsored by the Disabled American Veterans commemorating the dedication of the World War II Memorial in Washington, DC in 2004.

Returning to the United States in 1944, Ruth had achieved the rank of Captain and was assigned to England General Hospital in Atlantic City, NJ. There she met her future husband, Lee Balch, a Navy radar specialist and electrical engineer. They married in 1945, left the service when the war ended, and moved to Knoxville, TN, where Lee worked for Westinghouse. Several years later they relocated to Kingsport, TN. In 1950 Lee decided to enter the ministry, so Ruth, Lee and their three children moved to Sewanee, TN, where Lee attended St. Luke’s Seminary at the University of the South. He was ordained as an Episcopal priest in 1954, and his first assignment was a mission church, St. Anne’s, in Woodstock, TN. At the same time he served as a chaplain at the U.S. Naval Station at nearby Millington, TN. Ruth and Lee enjoyed the many friends they made in each place they lived and had wonderful memories through the years.

In 1956 Lee accepted a call to Grace Episcopal Church in Chattanooga, where he served for 22 years until his retirement in 1978. Ruth was active with church activities, the Engineers’ Wives Auxiliary, the local Purple Heart chapter, and other voluntary endeavors. She also worked during these years for Parkridge Hospital, Stanrich Studio, and later for Dr. Winborn B. Willingham. She and Lee loved to travel, and they enjoyed their trips to Hong Kong, Europe, the Caribbean, and places throughout the U.S.

A devoted wife and mother, Ruth doted on her grandchildren and loved to spend time with them. She was also an excellent amateur painter and ceramist. She was preceded in death by her husband, Lee; and her son, Thomas C. Balch of Dallas, TX. She is survived by two brothers, Robert Hindman (Ruth) of Johnstown and John Hindman of St. Petersburg, FL; a sister-in-law, Helen Martinson of Seguin, TX; her daughters: Laura Scherzer of Gaithersburg, MD and Martha Granda (Tom) of Reston, VA; her daughter-in-law Sharon Balch, of Dallas, TX; four grandchildren: Michael (Daphne) Scherzer of Ringgold, GA; Joelly (Peter) Belman of N. Potomac, MD; Jessica (Matt) Bonness of Vienna, VA; and Evan Balch of Dallas, TX; five great-grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews.

A memorial service will be scheduled in Chattanooga at a future date. In lieu of flowers, the family requests contributions be made in Ruth’s memory to Capital Hospice, Development Office, 6565 Arlington Blvd, Suite 500, Falls Church, VA 22042 or Grace Episcopal Church, 15 Belvoir Avenue, Chattanooga, TN 37411.