Published by admin on Wed, 10/23/2024 - 9:28am
Ellen Louise Ballard was born Oct. 25, 1945, in Baltimore, Md., to parents Kenneth and Florence (Zaboski) Diekhoff, who were stationed there during WWII, as Ellen’s father worked for the Glenn L. Martin Aircraft Company.
In 1946 the family of three traded stamps for gas to move back to Kenneth’s home state of South Dakota. The family settled in Wessington, where they farmed and ranched, living in a home without running water, electricity and indoor plumbing. In 1952, sister Becky joined the family.