Benjamin Rowan McRee

Benjamin Rowan McRee Benjamin Rowan McRee passed away on July 17th in Arroyo Grande CA. He was born in Decatur Georgia in 1928 to Ben and Anne Haddock McRee. He grew up in Athens GA where he graduated from Athens High School. After completing a year of college he joined the Navy as they were still drafting despite WWII having ended a couple of years earlier. After serving as an Electronics Technician for two years he returned to college, graduating from Georgia Tech with a B.S. in Electrical Engineering. At Tech he was in the Air Force ROTC and after graduation he served as a Lieutenant at Wright Patterson Air Force Base in the Research and Development Command. He then moved to California where he began working for the Hughes Aircraft Co. while concurrently earning his M.S. in E.E. at the University of Southern California. After 34 years working in the radar and missile divisions of the company he retired from Hughes and soon afterwards moved to the Central Coast with his wife Jo. Ben enjoyed his work and the challenges it provided, but also enjoyed sailing, traveling, hiking and studying French language and literature. He loved spending time with his family and was very proud of his children and grandchildren. He is survived by his wife of 68 years Josephine (Jo) Edwards McRee, son Ben of Lancaster PA, son Bill of San Luis Obispo, daughter Jody Huntling of Thousand Oaks, and 6 grandchildren. He will be missed and remembered fondly by all who knew him.