December 18, 1938 – September 21, 2023
Benda was born December 18, 1938 in Petersburg, Nebraska to Harold & Lucille Benda. He was the 2nd of 10 children in the family (1 brother & 8 sisters!). John was a quiet, gentle, kind soul who dearly loved his family!
He attended St. Boniface School, graduating in 1958.
He had a prosthetic leg from when he was a young child, but he never let that hinder him. He helped many new amputees come to terms with their amputations & learn that the loss of a limb doesn’t need to slow you down. He always enjoyed helping others & never complained even if he had other things he could have been doing. He was often a “borrowed” Dad when needed in the neighborhood. He worked the majority of his life as an architectural draftsman. His drawings were not computer assisted & many of them were like artistic creations!
He loved dill pickles & absolutely anything chocolate. He read the newspaper faithfully (every single article) & was always on the lookout for a good coupon. John loved watching his kids/grandkids play sports, especially soccer.
He preferred to listen rather than talk, unless you were ready to say goodbye, with your hand on the doorknob . . . then he always had another story to tell or question to ask.
John is survived by a large, loving family. We will all miss him & his presence on earth deeply.
He is survived by wife Peg Benda; 5 children: Bill Benda (Sabine), Kelley Redding (Terry), Chris Olander (Shelly), Dan Benda (Kourtney), Dave Olander (Angie) and 9 grandchildren. He also leaves behind 9 siblings, Janice Pelster (Ray), Judy Zegers (Gayle), Jerry Benda (Kathy), Joan Johnson (Tom), Julie Thome (Dennie), Jeanine Welniak (Dan), Jolene Foss (Pat), Joyce Holliday (Bob) and Jill Dunning (John).
