Guadalcanal Veteran Dies

Captain Benjamin R. Eggeman,Jr.,U.S. Navy Retired,a veteran of major Pacific theater operations of World War II,died 7 April.Born in 1918 in Grand Haven,Michigan,Captain Eggeman graduated from Yale in 1941,receiving his commission from Yale naval ROTC.He served in the Pacific as an amphibious landing officer,participating in the battles of Guadalcanal,Iwo Jima,Leyte Gulf,Saipan,Bougainville and Luzon.He went on to serve in the Atlantic Fleet aboard cruisers and destroyers,as well as command the USS Putnam(DD-757),USS Denebola(AD-12) and Destroyer Squadron Two.
Captain Eggeman also served in several capacities in the Plans and Policy field,rising to a position on the Joint Staff at the Pentagon.A graduate of the Industrial College of the Armed Forces,he additionally earned a Masters in Business from George Washngton University.He was awarded several decorations,including the Legion of Merit,a Bronze Star with V,a Navy Unit Citation,a Phillipines Presidential Unit Citattion,Phillipines Liberation Medal and World War II Victory Medal.
After retiring,Captain Eggeman served in the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and on land use panels in Fairfax County,Virginia.Survived by his wife Jeanne,three sons and six grandsons,he will be interred in Arlington National Cemetery.

Squadron Leader Succumbs

Captain George E. Ford,U.S. Navy Retired,who was awarded the Navy Cross in World War II,has died at 90 years old.Captain Ford was a dive bomber squadron leader in the Pacific theater.He received the Navy Cross for his extraordinary heroism in the battle of Leyte Gulf,the Philippine's.
After the war,Captain Ford was Commander,Naval Air Station Point Mugu,California.He retired from the Navy in 1971 and began a career in real estate,home building and marketing,becoming Vice President of Marketing at the Wills and Van Metre Company.
Captain Ford is survived by his wife Patricia,as well as three children,eight grandchildren and two great grandchildren.He will be interred at Arlington National Cemetery.