Benjamin Murry Ward, 62, of Webster, Texas, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, November 11, 2020, in Beaumont, Texas. He was born on August 18, 1958, in Odessa, Texas to the late Steve Benjamin and Virgilee Faltysek Ward. Ben graduated from Robert E. Lee High School in Baytown, class of 1976. He proudly served his country in the United States Air Force and retired after forty-one years of dedicated service in the Air National Guard. Ben was a weapons mechanic while serving in the Air Force and was stationed in Panama and Israel during his service. He worked as a process operator for many years with Dow Chemical and then later Olin Chemical.
In his younger years, while living in Alice, Texas, Ben played in little league baseball sponsored by the Alice Police Association. He even made an unassisted triple play in an All-Star game. While in high school, Ben was the editor for the school newspaper, he lived out a story by spending the night as a homeless man and wrote a story discussion about the big oak tree on Texas Avenue in Baytown. He was also a history buff and was very knowledgeable about Texas history, World War II, and politics.
Ben pursued many interests, some of which included deer hunting, fishing, and spending time at his two favorite beer joints. He was an avid fan of the Houston Astros and Dallas Cowboys. Ben also liked the Houston Texans and could talk about the Astros for hours on end. He will be deeply missed and fondly remembered by all who knew and loved him.
Ben was preceded in death by his parents. He leaves behind to cherish his memory, his siblings Steve Ward and wife Melinda of Dayton, Sherry Ward McCain of Crosby, Virgil Ward of Baytown, and Deana Ward of Beaverton, Oregon; his nieces and nephews Bethanie Ward, Marcie Beamer, Dusty Ward, Casey Ward, and Dani Ward, his great-nieces and nephews Bryant, Makenna, Rylie-Kay, Cami and Jake; and a host of other loving relatives and friends.
A celebration of Ben’s life will be held at 5pm on Friday, November 20, 2020, in the chapel of Sterling Funeral Home, 602 N. Main Street in Dayton. It was Ben’s request that you come in casual attire as he preferred no stuffy suits or ties be worn.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Ben’s honor to The Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758516, Topeka, Kansas 66675-8516 or by visiting http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/donate, American Cancer Society at http://www.donate3.cancer.org or to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital at http://www.stjude.org
To send flowers to Benjamin’s family, please visit our floral store.