Benjamin Paul Draper

Ben was preceded in death by his father, Dr. Stephen Draper, and his brother, Drake Draper. He is survived by his mother, Landra Draper; his brothers, Stephen W. Draper II and John Brandon Draper; his sister, Cynthia Draper; and his grandmother, Barbara Kilgore.

Ben was born in Jacksonville, FL, on March 24, 1989. He grew up in Jacksonville and graduated from Fletcher High School. He earned an Associate’s degree at Florida State College at Jacksonville, and was recognized by the college with an Excellence award for Outstanding Achievement as an Exceptional Science Lab Tutor. Ben then majored in Chemistry and Physics at Florida State University.

Ben’s passions included playing guitar and songwriting. He enjoyed playing and listening to classic rock and folk music; one of his favorite artists was Bob Dylan. Ben was also a founding player in a local paintball team, Doc’s Raiders, which went on to become a professional national team known as the Jacksonville Raiders. He traveled all over the world with his teammates. He was there to help his team win The World Cup Championship in Paintball in Orlando in 2006, cementing their mark in the tournament world of paintball. His team was also featured in the Greg Hastings Paintball 3 (GHP3) and Social Paintball League (SPL) video games, and numerous magazine articles.

Ben was a wonderful person. He was very kind and will always be dearly loved. His memory will stay in our hearts forever. He will be greatly missed by his family and friends.

Visitation will be at 11:00am, Saturday, October 14, 2017, at Hardage-Giddens Chapel Hills Funeral Home, 850 St. Johns Bluff Road North, Jacksonville FL 32225, followed by the funeral service at 12:00pm. A memorial gathering will follow the services. Arrangements are under the care of Hardage-Giddens Chapel Hills. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in Ben's memory to the NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness 888-999-NAMI (6264) or Donate here: https://www.nami.org/Get-Involved/Donate-to-NAMI/Ways-of-Giving