Benjamin “Benny” Nathaniel Hughes, 80, of Bangs passed away February 11, 2020.
A Memorial service will be held 10:00 AM Saturday, February 15, 2020 at Heartland Funeral Home Chapel, 303 Early Blvd. Early, TX 76802 with Bobby Mechem officiating.
Friends of the family will gather at 7 Oaks ranch following the memorial service.
Benny was born December 17, 1939 in San Antonio to Luke and Kathleen Elizabeth Hughes. He attended Grandview High School and joined the US Army. Benny married Carolyn Willbanks in September of 1962 and they began a life together that blessed them with 3 children. He returned to Grandview after the Army and went to work for Bell Helicopter where he worked for 10 years. He and a friend became the first Emergency Medical Technicians in Grandview and he started teaching the EMT class at the local hospital in Grandview. Benny then went to work in the US Postal service where he served for over 20 years, most of those years was as Post Master for Grandview. Carolyn and Benny did a lot of traveling after retirement and loved every minute of it. They settled down in Midland for a bit in the late 90’s and then traveled some more finally landing in Bangs. They bought a 100 year old house on some acreage that was named 7 Oaks ranch and remodeled that house into a beautiful estate. Their traveling days weren’t over with though. They soon went to work for an oil company traveling coast to coast working with equipment. Carolyn and Benny loved traveling and meeting new people. He had a sense of humor that attracted people and he loved being social. You didn’t have to worry about what Benny had on his mind, just go to the local subway where he met with his friends to drink coffee and he would share his thoughts on any topic. Carolyn admired his ethics and his compassion toward people. Everyone loved his nature and his devout conservative views were admired and appreciated by many. Benny enjoyed going hunting and fishing in his off time. Fall was always a special time because he loved to hunt with his dad and brother. He loved his grandchildren and spending time with the family. Carolyn got the name granny momma from the grandkids, so naturally Benny was called granny daddy. His family was a virtue to him and the center of his world.
Benny is survived by his beloved wife, Carolyn Hughes of Bangs; son, Clay Hughes of Houston; daughters, Dana Loftin of Bangs and LeAnn Schell of Fort Worth; 7 grandchildren; and 12 great grandchildren.
Benny was preceded in death by his parents; brothers, Joe Hughes, Wayne Hughes and Dalton Hughes.
In lieu of flowers the family requests that donations be made to Hendricks cancer center in Abilene at http://www.hendrickhealth.org/foundation/ways-to-donate.aspx
Condolences, tributes and memorials can be shared with the family at www.heartlandfuneralhome.net
