Benjamin Bouie Covington

Ben Covington went to be with his heavenly Father on January 20, 2015. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama on November 27, 1928. His family moved to Florida when he was a young boy and lived in several central Florida cities while growing up. He graduated from the University of Florida in 1951 with a Bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering. Upon graduating, he joined the United States Air Force. The Air Force sent him to M.I.T. to study meteorology for a year. He served in the Korean War guiding pilots safely through the skies.

Ben met his wife, Marjorie "Betty" Hannum, at the University of Florida and they wed in 1952 while serving in the Air Force. He retired from the military in 1955 and worked for RCA at Cape Canaveral in the development of long range missiles for approximately 2 1/2 years. He then became a Manufacturer's Representative in the South East region for approximately 12 years. In 1968, he was hired by Tracor, Inc. which relocated him to Austin, Texas. With the demise of Tracor in 1972, Ben began his final journey of employment as a Civil Servant for the U.S. Army, first at Bergstrom for about a year, then at Ft. Hood for 17 years. He retired in 1993.

Ben enjoyed working on cars and restoring cars. He and his sons spent many weekends working on their cars. He spent a lot of his spare time tinkering on projects in the garage or working on inventions during his employment years. After retirement, he and his wife spent most summers exploring the United States with their Airstream Travel Club. They accomplished visiting every state except for Hawaii, but no doubt, if there had been a way to drive to Hawaii, they would have accomplished all 50 states.

Ben is survived by his wife Betty, their five children, son Bryan and wife Cathrine, son Frank and wife Gayle, son Richard and wife Diann, son Kenneth and wife Libby, and daughter Marjorie Waley and husband Dennis; their eleven grandchildren, Beth, Bradley, Clay, Blake, Rebecca, Eliot, Ellis, Brynn, Paul, Colin and Evan; and ten great grandchildren, Miles, Jasper, Silas, Elsa, Baxter, Quinn, Alivia, Nolan, Olivia and Chase. He is also survived by his sister Barbara Casto and husband Mark of Florida.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Covenant Presbyterian Church Building Fund or to the charity of your choice.