Latham Bennett Henkey

Ben Henkey was born in 1932 in St. Louis, Missouri. His parents Bula Alice and Charles Latham were a homemaker and bookkeeper, and an automotive mechanic, respectively. In their hometown of Troy, Missouri, Charles went on to own his own service station, and Bula became the full-time receptionist for the Methodist church. They lived in a Victorian house on Monroe Street, raising two children – Latham Bennett (Ben) and Alice Ann.

In the years following World War Two, both Ben and Alice Ann would go on to college, the first in their family to do so. Ben attended Central Methodist College, where he majored in English, performed in a range of musical and chorale groups, and wrote for and edited the Central Collegian. 

Immediately following graduation, Ben joined the U.S. Army. It was the height of the Cold War, just a year after the Korean War ended, and the draft was still in place. Rather than wait to be called up, he volunteered – displaying a deeply ingrained sense of duty and altruism. He served in Germany in what was allegedly an infantry regiment, which spent most of its time eavesdropping on East German military frequencies and preparing to detonate charges on bridges in and around Berlin.

During his service, Ben continued to be involved in the music and writing projects that would last his entire life. He then made a career of the written word, working as a reporter, columnist, and editor for publications including the Troy Free Press, the Granite City Press-Record, and the Alton Telegraph. He was promoted multiple times, eventually becoming a columnist and Managing Editor at the St. Louis-based Sporting News, then known as the “sports bible.”

His deep love of classical music and American standards kept him involved in chorale music, singing with groups including the St. Charles First United Methodist choir, the Daniel Boone Chorus, the Ambassadors of Harmony, and the Missouri Choral Society. His solid baritone voice remained a trusty instrument well into his 80s, despite failing hearing.

Ben met the love of his life in 1960, when he courted and wed Rebecca Glore, a professional teacher and educator to whom he would stay married for 55 years. They soon built a house in St. Charles, Missouri, where they started a family and became active in the local Methodist church and a range of social and volunteer organizations. There he grew and maintained the greenest, most weed-free lawn on the block for 40 years.

Motivated in part by his military service, Ben would return more than a dozen times to Europe for cultural and tourist visits. Following his retirement from the Sporting News, he developed a second career as a tour guide and travel-magazine writer.

He is survived by his wife Rebecca, his son and daughter-in-law Tom and Megan, his sister Alice Ann, his nieces Kristin, Jamie, and Tara, and his nephews Barry and Bart. His voice will also be missed by the hundreds of writers, singers, and musicians with whom he worked over the years. Donations in remembrance may be made to the First St. Charles United Methodist Church.