John Lewis BENDER

Abt 1921 - 2012

• Born	Abt 1921	New Jersey
  Gender	Male
  Died	13 Aug 2012	Fairfax,Virginia
  Person ID	I12943	Johnson Hindin Tree
  Last Modified	24 Dec 2013

  
  

  Father	Harold Herman BENDER, Dr.,   b. 20 Apr 1882, Martinsburg, Berkeley Co., West Virginia ,   d. Yes, date unknown
  Mother	Amelia Ashcom HETZEL,   b. 20 Mar 1884, Paw Paw, West Virginia ,   d. Yes, date unknown
  Married	3 Sep 1910	Martinsburg, Berkeley Co., West Virginia
  Family ID	F643	Group Sheet

  
  

  Family	Fredrika Pratt
  Children	1. Margaret BENDER   2. John F. BENDER   3. James BENDER   4. Susan BENDER,   d. 1998
  Family ID	F5416	Group Sheet

  
  

• Notes

  The following obituary was published in the January 16, 2013 issue of The Princeton Alumni Weekly: John L. Bender ’42 *49 John Bender died Aug. 13, 2012, in Fairfax, Va. John was a native of Princeton. His father, Harold Bender, was professor of Indo-Germanic philology at the University. John prepared at Phillips Exeter Academy. At Princeton he majored in history and was a member of the Yacht Club and Cloister Inn. In 1941 he volunteered for active duty as an officer in the Coast Guard. He was assigned to anti-submarine duty off the American coast. In this capacity, he was part of the team that sank a German U-boat, an action for which he received a Bronze Star. Later his ship participated in the Okinawa campaign and downed two kamikaze aircraft. John retired as a captain in the Coast Guard Reserve. After the war, John returned to Princeton and received his bachelor’s degree with honors. He also earned a master’s degree in history in 1949. In the early 1950s he joined the Army as a political analyst. He later served as an analyst for the State Department and held posts in Manila and Tel Aviv. His wife, Fredrika Pratt Bender, died in 1999. John is survived by his daughter, Margaret Butler; sons John ’67 and James; nine grandchildren; and four great-grandchil dren. To them all, the class sends condolences. ******* The following obituary was published in the August 21, 2012 edition of the Washington Post: Published: August 21, 2012 John L. Bender, a retired political analyst for the Army Department and the State Department, died Aug. 13 at the Virginian assisted living facility in Fairfax County. He was 91. He had dementia, said his son John F. Bender. Mr. Bender was a decorated officer of the U.S. Coast Guard and a World War II veteran when he joined the Army Department as a political analyst in the early 1950s. He later served as an analyst for the State Department and held postings in Manila and Tel Aviv. He retired from the Army Department in 1976. John Lewis Bender was born in Princeton, N.J. His father was a Princeton University professor and former department head of Near East studies. The younger Mr. Bender was a history graduate of Princeton University, where he also received a master’s degree in history. He served in the U.S. Coast Guard during World War II and received the Bronze Star for his part in the sinking of a German submarine off the coast of Nantucket. He later served as the commander of a Coast Guard cutter in Japan. He retired from the Coast Guard Reserve at the rank of captain. He maintained an interest in sailing and kept a boat, christened the Secret Sharer, in the Washington Marina for many years. He served as a volunteer with the National Park Service on the Mall and was a driver for the American Cancer Society, shuttling cancer patients to appointments. His wife of 55 years, Fredrika Pratt Bender, died in 1999. A daughter, Susan Bruch, died in 1998. Survivors include three children, John F. Bender of McLean, James H. Bender of Tampa and Margaret Butler of Hopedale, Mass.; nine grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.