Lew W. Benham
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Lew W. Benham passed away peacefully on October 22, 2021. He was born on December 7, 1955 at St. Mary's Hospital in Galveston. Lew was a 1974 graduate of O'Connell High School. Surprisingly, Lew was a boy scout and obtained the Eagle Scout rank.
Lew worked for Union Carbide (now known as DOW Chemical) for 30 years where he was on the Emergency Response Team serving as a Captain and EMT. He also taught at the Carbide A&M Fire School where he was a Project Director and Chief Instructor.
Lew was proud of being the Galveston County Cook-off Superintendent for over 25 years. He could be seen driving around the fairgrounds in his Dallas Cowboys golf cart or drinking Miller Lite at the BBQ building. His biggest passion in life was the Dallas Cowboys. He was a season ticket holder for 27 seasons. He attended numerous playoff games, including NFC Championships and two super bowls!
Lew is survived by his mother, Elizabeth Deiss; his daughter and her husband, Ashley and Victor Garcia, sons, Cameron and Jessie Garcia; his sisters and their husbands, Ann and Erwin Wilbanks, and Lisa and Sammy Campo; his niece, Elizabeth Campo; his nephew, Stephen Campo; his best friend, Frankie Ghinaudo; and the Galveston County Fair and Rodeo's BBQ cook-off Family.
He was greeted in Heaven by his nephews Joseph and Patrick Campo, who were waiting for him with an ice-cold Miller Lite.
Family, friends, and the cook-off community will gather later this year for One Last Brew with Lew!
In lieu of flowers, please contribute to Galveston County Cook off Fair & Rodeo Road Improvements in Lew's honor.