KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — September will mark 35 years since Robin Ballard last talked with her brother. She said he did a lot of living in his 27 years, but U.S. Army veteran Dennis Ballard’s family is still waiting for closure.
Dennis Ballard’s sister remembers him having a good heart and loving his family. The siblings grew up in the Knoxville area before moving to the Morristown area. She explained that when he was younger, he was a lifeguard at the White Pine swimming pool, and he later went on to serve in the Army for four years. Even when he was stationed in Germany, Robin said Dennis never forgot to call on her birthday.
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Eventually, Dennis moved back to the Knoxville area and got married. Even though they lived farther apart and didn’t see each other often, Robin said she and Denis were close. She remembered talking to him on September 1, 1991, the day before he was killed. That night, she had a bad dream, which is when she believed her brother was killed.
“I know that’s when it happened. I just felt it. I’ve dreamed about it. And I felt it happen. I sat right up in the middle of the bed that night, with the dream waking me up. And then when I look back, I think that had to be the same time because we were close. He was my only brother.”
The next day, Labor Day, Robin spent the day cleaning out her basement. That afternoon, she got the call that something had happened to Dennis…