Henry Benjamin Hardy Jr.

Henry Benjamin (“Ben”) Hardy Jr. passed away peacefully at Frasier Meadows Retirement Community in Boulder, Colorado on July 14, 2021. He was 95.

Ben was born in Quincy, Illinois on December 6, 1925 as the only child of Ethel (nee Meyer) and Henry Hardy. When Ben was 8 years old his parents moved to Decatur, IL where he graduated as Valedictorian of his high school class in 1943.

After 15 months at Millikin University in Decatur, Ben was inducted into the Army Corps of Engineers, trained as a radio operator, and crossed the border from France into Germany on May 8, 1945 (V-E Day). Following a year of occupation duty in Germany, he was discharged on June 1, 1946.

In 1948 Ben received a B.S. degree in Engineering Physics from the University of Illinois. While there he also earned a private pilot's license and fell in love with the freedom of flight. He then attended the U. of Wisconsin where he received his M.S. degree in Physics and met and married his wife, Winifred Rose Brockhaus.

In 1950 Ben and Winnie moved to Wilmington, Delaware where they raised four children while Ben worked at the DuPont Company as a research scientist and later in technical customer service – the latter of which took him Europe, Scandinavia, Japan, Taiwan, India, China and all over the U.S. assisting customers in the implementation of DuPont’s Nomex brand textile fibers.

In 1985 Ben elected to take a generous early retirement package from DuPont and then did consulting work for the next five years. In 1991, he and Winnie moved to a home near Bailey, Colorado where they enjoyed the mountain lifestyle at 8,500 feet amidst the pines and aspens and Ben continued to enjoy reading, travel, and photography.

In 2005 Ben and Winnie moved into Frasier Meadows – spending eleven years in Independent Living before health issues took them to Assisted Living and finally into Frasier’s skilled nursing facility. Winnie passed away on July 4, 2021 and ten days later, Ben joined her.

Ben was truly a Renaissance Man. He was fluent in German by his 20th birthday and learned Russian and Japanese in his later years. He was a voracious reader of a wide range of subjects – both scientific and cultural. Ben excelled at everything he set his mind to and endeavored to hold others to his high standards of achievement and his omnivorous intellectual curiosity.

Ben was also passionate about the never-ending struggle to “form a more perfect Union”. To that end he was a life-long “FDR Democrat” who risked approbation at work and in social circles by persistently advocating for Civil Rights during the 60s. In the following decades, he continued to advocate for the rights of all who are marginalized and discriminated against.

Ben loved cars and long road trips with his family, Beethoven and Glenn Miller, golden aspen leaves, large family reunions, ethnic foods, his daily newspaper, crackling fires in the fireplace, lively political debates and meeting new people from around the world. His only real hobby was life-long learning.

Ben is survived by four children (David, Richard, Kathy Cady and Dan). He is also survived by four adult grandchildren (Alison Cady, Rich Cady, Katie Hardy and Maggie Hardy).

No services are planned at this time and no flowers or other contributions are requested. Instead we ask that you might take a moment to reflect on the long and wonderful life Ben had and the passion that drove him to excel in everything he did and believed in.