John Maguire Benzian ’67

John Maguire Benzian ’67 of Excelsior, Minnesota, died on January 9. He came to college from Anoka, Minnesota, majored in history and government, and was a brother of Beta Theta Pi and Sphinx. After graduation, and following service in the U.S. Navy as a communications officer aboard the USS Pocono, he earned his J.D. from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1973. John enjoyed a 30-year legal career with National Car Rental Systems, after which he began a general law practice concentrating on business formation and employment law. With his longtime partner, Kathy Kucera, he loved sailing on Lake Minnetonka, racing his J-24 out of the Wayzata Yacht Club, and cruising on the Great Lakes and in Florida and the Caribbean. Paul Killebrew ’67, who still remembers an evening after graduation with John in Zermatt that led to an impromptu climb up the Matterhorn the next morning, recalls, “John was a true, one-of-a-kind great friend. He is missed!” John is survived by Kathy; brothers Steve and Peter ’64; nieces and nephews James, Michael, Jennifer, Tom, Whitney, Barry, Clare, and Jake; and Kathy’s children, Krit and Taylor.