Ben Farr has been busy since joining the Air Force after we graduated from SHS.  He served in Viet Nam and completed his four year commitment to the Air Force while living in Panama City.  He began his college education at this time and it took several years to complete his schooling because he was working full-time and was raising a family.  He attended Gulf Coast Community College, Northeast Sate, and Alexander City Community College and took on-line courses.  He completed his senior year at the University of Southern Mississippi, majoring in Business Administration with an emphasis in Human Resources Management.

After leaving the Air Force and while getting a higher education, Ben had several jobs, and moved to different states.  His jobs included retail store manager, quality and production control with a steel manufacturer and manager of a financial services company.  In 1973, he began working as a Human Resources Manager with Daniel International in Greenville, SC.  He worked in the Human Resources field for the next thirty-five years.  Thirteen of those years, he had his own consulting firm which provided recruiting, wage and labor studies, training, and investigative services for leading engineering and construction companies.

In 2004, Ben was contacted by Halliburton/KBR and offered a job with them in the Middle East.  He traveled extensively throughout Iraq, Kuwait, UAE, and Afghanistan. The job was in support of American troops and his responsibilities included investigating illegal activities, sexual harassment and racial discrimination charges, conducting health and welfare investigations, and counseling employees on local customs and behavior. After two years, he returned to Alabama to reestablish his consulting business in Pensacola, FL.

In late 2008, it was discovered that Ben had neck and throat cancer and he was advised to put his career on hold and give his full attention to recovery.  He has undergone radiation and chemotherapy and has been hospitalized four times in the last year with pneumonia.  Doctors believe that the neck and throat cancer is in remission, but there is one spot on his lung which is being closely watched.  Ben has never smoked nor used any tobacco products.  The VA feels that it is possible that the cancer is due to exposure to Agent Orange while he was in Viet Nam.  He had not wanted to retire until he was past seventy, because he really enjoyed his work.

Ben remarried five years ago to Teresa.  Andalusia is her hometown and that is where they reside.  Teresa works for the State in the Vocational Rehabilitation Department.

Ben has three children, two boys and a girl.  His oldest son lives in Dothan and works as an inspector of aircraft.  His daughter lives in Mobile and is a Marine Biologist.  His youngest son lives in Auburn and is a property manager.  Teresa’s daughter is in radiology school.  They have eight grandchildren.

Ben and Teresa enjoy traveling and do so as often as possible.  They are hoping to go to Australia as their next big trip.

Ben is also a strong supporter of veterans and veteran’s organizations.  He has held a number of posts in the VFW, and was instrumental in establishing a VFW post in rural Wyoming.  He has established memorial funds for the families of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan.  He never says a prayer without including our men and women in uniform who are serving in harm’s way.