Benjamin Franklin King

Benjamin King, age 79, of Forest Hill, MD passed away peacefully on June 18, 2019 at Harford Memorial Hospital in Havre de Grace, MD. Born in Uniontown, PA, he was the son of the late Homer F. and Gladys B. King and husband of Mary Ann (Sniezek) King. A small-town boy, after two years at UPENN, Ben left the big city and graduated from Waynesburg college with a Bachelor’s of Science in Mathematics. He was a Branch Chief at Aberdeen Proving Ground under AMSAA, for 37 years. Ben held a variety of leadership positions in AMSAA focused on Special Weapons Effects Programs, Logistics and Reliability. He demonstrated leadership at the Branch and Division levels within AMSAA managing 30-80 employees and mentored many young employees in developing Operations Research Capabilities. Mr. King enhanced his analytic capabilities through graduate level courses at the University of Delaware. Mr. King retired from AMSAA in 2000 as the Branch Chief of the War Reserve Branch, Logistics Analysis Division. In this position he managed the analysis of Army War Reserves Requirements and a Worldwide Sample Data Collection Program on Army Equipment Failures. In this position he traveled to Army training exercises in support of units at the National Training Center, Germany and Korea. After retiring from AMSAA, he worked for Northrop Grumman supporting defense programs. He finished his career on a special project supporting IED defeat programs. Mr. King received many awards and recognitions during his career and was awarded the Order of St. Barbara for his significant contributions to the Army Field Artillery Corps.

In addition to being a devoted husband, father and grandfather, he was a great friend. He enjoyed fishing, including traveling to Canada to fish and teaching his grandkids to fish. After retirement he built a cedar fishing boat, which took him 2 years to complete. Ben loved music and was blessed with a beautiful singing voice that he shared freely. He was a fan of the Orioles and Steelers, had a passion for reading, and being outdoors. Ben lived his life according to a simple guiding principle: God, Family, Country.

In addition to his wife, Mr. King is survived by two sons, Tyler (Angela) Benjamin King, Jared (Kristyn) Wallas King; daughter, Holly (Nathan) King Swartz; grandchildren, Benjamin, Catherine, Oliver, and Vivienne King, and Abby and Grant Swartz; brother, J. William King; sister, Dorothy Ann Esparza; and many nieces, nephews, and other family.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by brothers, Homer F., Samuel, and Robert L. King; and sister, Mary Lou Kargl.

Those who desire may send contributions In Memory of Benjamin King to The Kaufman Cancer Center, c/o Upper Chesapeake Health Foundation, 520 Upper Chesapeake Drive, Suite 405, Bel Air, MD, 21014 or Wounded Warrior Project, P.O. Box 758517, Topeka, KS, 66675. Shriners Hospitals for Children Attn: Office of Development, 2900 N. Rocky Point, Tampa, FL 33607.