A native of Louisville, Kentucky, Marvin D. Kellem IV earned an undergraduate degree from Western Kentucky University and a graduate degree from Kansas State University. He was also a member of the Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity.
Kellem began his military career as an enlisted soldier in the Army Reserve. From there, he earned a commission and became an air defense artillery officer, transitioning to the logistics branch. Kellem commanded a maintenance company at Fort Carson, Colorado, and a distribution battalion in Corpus Christi, Texas. He also served as the enlisted ordnance branch chief for over 45,000 soldiers. His final assignment was at Army headquarters, where he served in the G-4 maintenance division in the Pentagon.
By the end of his career, Kellem had served the Army for over 30 years. He completed two combat deployment tours and led hundreds of military personnel and civilians.
Kellem was a loving husband to his wife, Bonnie, to whom he was married for 25 years. Together, they had two children: Todne’ and Cody. Kellem passed away Feb. 29, 2020, in Arlington, Virginia, due to an unforeseen medical issue. He was only 49 years old.
We honor his service.
Nominate a Veteran for #VeteranOfTheDay
Do you want to light up the face of a special Veteran? Have you been wondering how to tell your Veteran they are special to you? VA’s #VeteranOfTheDay social media feature is an opportunity to highlight your Veteran and his/her service.
It’s easy to nominate a Veteran. Visit our blog post about nominating to learn how to create the best submission.
Contributors
Writer: Aubrey Hutson
Editor: Elissa Tatum
Fact checker: Garrett Graham
Graphic artist: Brandi Muñoz
Topics in this story
More Stories
This week’s Honoring Veterans Spotlight honors the service of Navy Veteran Ken Mattingly, who served as a pilot during the 1950s and later became an astronaut during the Apollo missions.
This week’s Honoring Veterans Spotlight honors the service of Air Force Veteran Gavino Cavazos, who served from 1949 to 1973 during both the Korean and Vietnam Wars.
This week’s Honoring Veterans Spotlight honors the service of Army Veteran Howard Brown, who served during the Vietnam War from 1964 to 1969 and the Gulf War from 1969 to 1992.
Thank you for your long and distinguished service!
We honor the service of Marvin D. Kellem IV.