Benjamin Lee Grote West
Memorial services for Benjamin Lee Grote West of Montgomery City, formerly of Wellsville, will be held Wednesday at 2 p.m., at Myers Funeral Home in Wellsville. The Rev. John Foster and The Rev. Mike Carmi will officiate. A Masonic service will be held at 1:30 p.m.
Serving as honorary pallbearers will be Chris Brookman, Joel Brower, Donny Bryson, Steve Fort, Brian Maskey, Keith Reynolds, Brian Whitehead, and C.W. Yordt.
Visitation will be held from noon until the time of service Wednesday at the funeral home.
Interment of his cremains will be in Fairmount Cemetery in Middletown. Full military honors will be provided by Wellsville V.F.W. Post 3056 and Missouri Military Funeral Honors. Firefighter Service Honors will also be provided.
Benjamin Lee Grote West died Saturday, Dec. 8, 2018, of an apparent heart attack, at his home in Montgomery City. He was 36 years old.
He was born Oct. 25, 1982, at Audrain Medical Center in Mexico. He was the only son of Ronald Lee and Tracy Lynn Park Grote. Froman early age, he was raised by his mother, and Sidney Clay West, who later adopted him.
Benjamin was a 2001 graduate of Wellsville-Middletown R-1 High School, taking great pride working as a school reporter for the Optic-News, and enjoyed all music and band related activities while in school.
He was a Veteran of the United States Navy, having been honorably discharged in December 2005. While in the Navy he served as a CTR3, “Spook” as he liked to refer tohis rank as, at NIOC, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii where he processed over 9,000 intelligence files resulting in 175 time sensitive reports issued to national consumers and theater commanders, ten of which were briefed directly to the Department of Central Intelligenceand the Commander in Chief, which earned him the Joint Service Achievement Medal. He also received the Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, and Global War on Terrorism Medal.
At the time of his death, Ben was employed at the Wellsville Optic-News, where he currently served as Editor. He had been employed there in high school, and had been employed as Assistant Editor for the past seven years. He took great pride in his work and enjoyed sharing the news with the readers.
He was a member of the Wellsville V.F.W. Post 3056, Montgomery Fire Protection District, the Masonic Lodge 246, the Missouri Press Association, and the Hermann Band. Benjamin had attended the Middletown Baptist Church.
Benjamin is survived by his mother, Tracy Lynn Park and her companion, Richard Craven of Montgomery City, Missouri; father, Sidney Clay West and companion Allison Browerof Montgomery City, Missouri; father, Ronald Lee Grote of Cyrene, Missouri; grandmothers, Wilma See of New Florence, Missouri and Romana Grote of Bowling Green, Missouri; step-sister,Elly Beckman of Hollister, Missouri; uncle, Travis Kevin Park of St. Charles, Missouri; aunts, Lana Jo Bailey of Wellsville, Missouri, and Shelley Hampton of Springfield,Missouri; cousins, Rachel Brewer, Ashley Witter, Katie Alderson, Karly Bailey, Natalie and Brady Hampton,, and Michael Malicoat; his fiancée, Sierra Christianson and her children of Sacramento, California, and numerous extended aunts and uncles, and cousins. Also surviving are a host of friends including two special friends, Carrie and Makinze Swarthout.
He was preceded in death by his grandparents, Claude and Frances Park, Buell West, and Maurice Grote; and an aunt Wendy Hargis Park.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Wellsville V.F.W Post 3056 or the Montgomery Fire Protection District c/o Myers Funeral Home, 203 East Bates Street, Wellsville,Missouri 63384.
Expressions of sympathy may be made to the family at www.myersfuneralhome.biz.
