Benjamin F. Dees was born in Montgomery County on December 29, 1934 and died March 23, 2021.
Benny was a high school athlete at Montgomery County High School and earned a scholarship to Brewton Parker Junior College where he played both basketball and baseball. After playing at Brewton Parker for 2 years, he was recruited by Georgia, Georgia Southern, and Middle Tennessee but decided to go to Wyoming to play baseball and basketball. After graduation, he played minor league baseball before returning to Georgia to begin his coaching career at Ware County and then at Manor before getting his first college opportunity at ABAC. After leaving ABAC, Benny started the basketball program at Virginia Commonwealth and became their first head coach. Benny's next college basketball opportunity was as an assistant coach at Western Kentucky. After which he spent the next few years back in south Georgia as a high school principal and coach before joining the basketball staff at Georgia Tech. He then headed to Tuscaloosa, Alabama to join Wimp Sanderson for six seasons as an assistant coach. But it was at the University of New Orleans that Benny led the Privateers to a first-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament as a head coach. After leaving UNO, Benny set his sights on his alma mater, Wyoming, where he spent six seasons that included another trip to the NCAA Tournament. He returned to the South in 1993, for his final college coaching stint at Western Carolina. He finally headed home to Georgia to become principal at Montgomery County High School. But coaching was still in his blood and he coached at Toombs and Jeff Davis Counties before officially retiring from coaching in 2010. He loved coaching basketball and was inducted into the Brewton Parker and ABAC Halls of Fame. He also enjoyed his farm in Cedar Crossing where he raised cattle.
Benny loved Uvalda Methodist Church where he attended as a child and later boasted about being the oldest member of the church. He loved his players and friends, but his greatest joy was family. He is preceded in death by his parents Flournoy Pat Dees and Pearl Wolfe Dees, his first wife Marie Griffin Dees, and a grandson James Scott Wilson.
He is survived by his wife of 38 years Nancy Carter Dees; children Jennifer Dees Wilson and husband Scott Wilson, Johanna Dees Cabrera and husband Jose Cabrera, and Joshua Benjamin Dees and his wife Jenn Nunn Dees; grandchildren Katie and Emma Wilson, Stella, Marie, and Lydia Cabrera, Benny and Karlynn Dees, one sister Martha Dees Briant and husband Dr. Tom Briant, one brother Peter Dees and wife Delane Harrell Dees, several special nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
The funeral service will be held Saturday, March 27th, at 11:00 a.m. at the Uvalda United Methodist Church with Pastor Shareon Womack and Pastor Steven Toole officiating. Burial will follow at 3:30 on Saturday at Rose Hill Cemetery in Alma.
Flowers will be accepted, or memorial contributions may be made to Uvalda United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 173, Uvalda, GA 30473, or the Community Hospice Foundation, P.O. Box 2277, Vidalia, GA 30475.
Special thanks to Community Hospice of Vidalia and caregivers James Kelly, Ina Roberson, Ruby Givens, and Bobbie Fuller.
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Benjamin F. Dees, please visit our floral store.∼LARAMIE -- Sports Illustrated once tabbed Benny Dees as a "short, plump, frosty-haired cartoonist's dream who could charm the hide off a buffalo."
Former Wyoming basketball star Turk Boyd told the national sports magazine back in 1987 that losing head coach Jim Brandenburg was "like a death in the family." That is until Dees showed up in Laramie with "his personality and his up-tempo style of play and I think he caught us right there."
Fennis Dembo, the Cowboys' unquestioned leader and '87 SI cover boy, dropped this line about UW's new head coach: "Bang, he fit right in. It was like he'd been with us all along, like he was an assistant here or something. We'd seen him coach New Orleans in the NCAA tournament, and his guys beat Brigham Young, which we couldn't do. Then when we found out he was a Wyoming graduate, we knew he'd have the pride."
Dees led the Pokes to a 26-6 record during the 1987-88 season and a berth in the NCAA Tournament, the second straight trip to the Big Dance for Wyoming. He came back to Laramie with swagger and a southern drawl. He recruited with the best of them, selling the Dome of Doom and the Cowboy way of life at 7,220 feet above sea level. In his six seasons on the high plains, the Mount Vernon, Georgia product won 104 games and took the Cowboys to two postseason tournaments.
The 16th head coach in UW history died Tuesday. He was 86 years old.
Dees was responsible for bringing names like Reggie Slater, Tim Breaux and Theo Ratliff to Laramie. He also snagged other fan favorites like Bobby Traylor, Mo Alexander and Paris Bryant. And, of course, he inherited some of the best players this program has ever known in Eric Leckner, Jon Sommers, Sean Dent, Boyd and the "Dazzling Dude."
"Benny wore many hats with me, including teacher, disciplinarian and the person I looked to for encouragement. But the best hat of all was that of a friend. I will miss you, Coach Dees. Love you," Slater wrote on Facebook Tuesday morning.
Another former UW player, Robyn Davis said, "I would have never made it without him. (I'll) Always remember how he recruited me."
Dees came to Laramie on a baseball scholarship in 1957. He also lettered in hoops under legendary head coach Everett Shelton.
He started his own college coaching career in 1968 when he took over a brand new program, Virginia Commonwealth. After two seasons in Richmond, Dees moved on to New Orleans.
″I'm a very impatient person and highly competitive," Dees told the Associated Press during his introductory press conference. "So, I feel we'll move right into a good program and a good beginning."There, he led the Privateers to a 26-4 mark in 1986-87 and a berth in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
It's no wonder his alma mater came calling.
After six seasons in Laramie, Dees moved on to Western Carolina where for two seasons he led the Pirates.
Dees spent just two seasons at every stop in his college coaching career -- except for Laramie.
Benny was a high school athlete at Montgomery County High School and earned a scholarship to Brewton Parker Junior College where he played both basketball and baseball. After playing at Brewton Parker for 2 years, he was recruited by Georgia, Georgia Southern, and Middle Tennessee but decided to go to Wyoming to play baseball and basketball. After graduation, he played minor league baseball before returning to Georgia to begin his coaching career at Ware County and then at Manor before getting his first college opportunity at ABAC. After leaving ABAC, Benny started the basketball program at Virginia Commonwealth and became their first head coach. Benny's next college basketball opportunity was as an assistant coach at Western Kentucky. After which he spent the next few years back in south Georgia as a high school principal and coach before joining the basketball staff at Georgia Tech. He then headed to Tuscaloosa, Alabama to join Wimp Sanderson for six seasons as an assistant coach. But it was at the University of New Orleans that Benny led the Privateers to a first-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament as a head coach. After leaving UNO, Benny set his sights on his alma mater, Wyoming, where he spent six seasons that included another trip to the NCAA Tournament. He returned to the South in 1993, for his final college coaching stint at Western Carolina. He finally headed home to Georgia to become principal at Montgomery County High School. But coaching was still in his blood and he coached at Toombs and Jeff Davis Counties before officially retiring from coaching in 2010. He loved coaching basketball and was inducted into the Brewton Parker and ABAC Halls of Fame. He also enjoyed his farm in Cedar Crossing where he raised cattle.
Benny loved Uvalda Methodist Church where he attended as a child and later boasted about being the oldest member of the church. He loved his players and friends, but his greatest joy was family. He is preceded in death by his parents Flournoy Pat Dees and Pearl Wolfe Dees, his first wife Marie Griffin Dees, and a grandson James Scott Wilson.
He is survived by his wife of 38 years Nancy Carter Dees; children Jennifer Dees Wilson and husband Scott Wilson, Johanna Dees Cabrera and husband Jose Cabrera, and Joshua Benjamin Dees and his wife Jenn Nunn Dees; grandchildren Katie and Emma Wilson, Stella, Marie, and Lydia Cabrera, Benny and Karlynn Dees, one sister Martha Dees Briant and husband Dr. Tom Briant, one brother Peter Dees and wife Delane Harrell Dees, several special nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
The funeral service will be held Saturday, March 27th, at 11:00 a.m. at the Uvalda United Methodist Church with Pastor Shareon Womack and Pastor Steven Toole officiating. Burial will follow at 3:30 on Saturday at Rose Hill Cemetery in Alma.
Flowers will be accepted, or memorial contributions may be made to Uvalda United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 173, Uvalda, GA 30473, or the Community Hospice Foundation, P.O. Box 2277, Vidalia, GA 30475.
Special thanks to Community Hospice of Vidalia and caregivers James Kelly, Ina Roberson, Ruby Givens, and Bobbie Fuller.
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Benjamin F. Dees, please visit our floral store.∼LARAMIE -- Sports Illustrated once tabbed Benny Dees as a "short, plump, frosty-haired cartoonist's dream who could charm the hide off a buffalo."
Former Wyoming basketball star Turk Boyd told the national sports magazine back in 1987 that losing head coach Jim Brandenburg was "like a death in the family." That is until Dees showed up in Laramie with "his personality and his up-tempo style of play and I think he caught us right there."
Fennis Dembo, the Cowboys' unquestioned leader and '87 SI cover boy, dropped this line about UW's new head coach: "Bang, he fit right in. It was like he'd been with us all along, like he was an assistant here or something. We'd seen him coach New Orleans in the NCAA tournament, and his guys beat Brigham Young, which we couldn't do. Then when we found out he was a Wyoming graduate, we knew he'd have the pride."
Dees led the Pokes to a 26-6 record during the 1987-88 season and a berth in the NCAA Tournament, the second straight trip to the Big Dance for Wyoming. He came back to Laramie with swagger and a southern drawl. He recruited with the best of them, selling the Dome of Doom and the Cowboy way of life at 7,220 feet above sea level. In his six seasons on the high plains, the Mount Vernon, Georgia product won 104 games and took the Cowboys to two postseason tournaments.
The 16th head coach in UW history died Tuesday. He was 86 years old.
Dees was responsible for bringing names like Reggie Slater, Tim Breaux and Theo Ratliff to Laramie. He also snagged other fan favorites like Bobby Traylor, Mo Alexander and Paris Bryant. And, of course, he inherited some of the best players this program has ever known in Eric Leckner, Jon Sommers, Sean Dent, Boyd and the "Dazzling Dude."
"Benny wore many hats with me, including teacher, disciplinarian and the person I looked to for encouragement. But the best hat of all was that of a friend. I will miss you, Coach Dees. Love you," Slater wrote on Facebook Tuesday morning.
Another former UW player, Robyn Davis said, "I would have never made it without him. (I'll) Always remember how he recruited me."
Dees came to Laramie on a baseball scholarship in 1957. He also lettered in hoops under legendary head coach Everett Shelton.
He started his own college coaching career in 1968 when he took over a brand new program, Virginia Commonwealth. After two seasons in Richmond, Dees moved on to New Orleans.
″I'm a very impatient person and highly competitive," Dees told the Associated Press during his introductory press conference. "So, I feel we'll move right into a good program and a good beginning."There, he led the Privateers to a 26-4 mark in 1986-87 and a berth in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
It's no wonder his alma mater came calling.
After six seasons in Laramie, Dees moved on to Western Carolina where for two seasons he led the Pirates.
Dees spent just two seasons at every stop in his college coaching career -- except for Laramie.
Benjamin F. Dees was born in Montgomery County on December 29, 1934 and died March 23, 2021.
Benny was a high school athlete at Montgomery County High School and earned a scholarship to Brewton Parker Junior College where he played both basketball and baseball. After playing at Brewton Parker for 2 years, he was recruited by Georgia, Georgia Southern, and Middle Tennessee but decided to go to Wyoming to play baseball and basketball. After graduation, he played minor league baseball before returning to Georgia to begin his coaching career at Ware County and then at Manor before getting his first college opportunity at ABAC. After leaving ABAC, Benny started the basketball program at Virginia Commonwealth and became their first head coach. Benny's next college basketball opportunity was as an assistant coach at Western Kentucky. After which he spent the next few years back in south Georgia as a high school principal and coach before joining the basketball staff at Georgia Tech. He then headed to Tuscaloosa, Alabama to join Wimp Sanderson for six seasons as an assistant coach. But it was at the University of New Orleans that Benny led the Privateers to a first-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament as a head coach. After leaving UNO, Benny set his sights on his alma mater, Wyoming, where he spent six seasons that included another trip to the NCAA Tournament. He returned to the South in 1993, for his final college coaching stint at Western Carolina. He finally headed home to Georgia to become principal at Montgomery County High School. But coaching was still in his blood and he coached at Toombs and Jeff Davis Counties before officially retiring from coaching in 2010. He loved coaching basketball and was inducted into the Brewton Parker and ABAC Halls of Fame. He also enjoyed his farm in Cedar Crossing where he raised cattle.
Benny loved Uvalda Methodist Church where he attended as a child and later boasted about being the oldest member of the church. He loved his players and friends, but his greatest joy was family. He is preceded in death by his parents Flournoy Pat Dees and Pearl Wolfe Dees, his first wife Marie Griffin Dees, and a grandson James Scott Wilson.
He is survived by his wife of 38 years Nancy Carter Dees; children Jennifer Dees Wilson and husband Scott Wilson, Johanna Dees Cabrera and husband Jose Cabrera, and Joshua Benjamin Dees and his wife Jenn Nunn Dees; grandchildren Katie and Emma Wilson, Stella, Marie, and Lydia Cabrera, Benny and Karlynn Dees, one sister Martha Dees Briant and husband Dr. Tom Briant, one brother Peter Dees and wife Delane Harrell Dees, several special nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
The funeral service will be held Saturday, March 27th, at 11:00 a.m. at the Uvalda United Methodist Church with Pastor Shareon Womack and Pastor Steven Toole officiating. Burial will follow at 3:30 on Saturday at Rose Hill Cemetery in Alma.
Flowers will be accepted, or memorial contributions may be made to Uvalda United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 173, Uvalda, GA 30473, or the Community Hospice Foundation, P.O. Box 2277, Vidalia, GA 30475.
Special thanks to Community Hospice of Vidalia and caregivers James Kelly, Ina Roberson, Ruby Givens, and Bobbie Fuller.
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Benjamin F. Dees, please visit our floral store.∼LARAMIE -- Sports Illustrated once tabbed Benny Dees as a "short, plump, frosty-haired cartoonist's dream who could charm the hide off a buffalo."
Former Wyoming basketball star Turk Boyd told the national sports magazine back in 1987 that losing head coach Jim Brandenburg was "like a death in the family." That is until Dees showed up in Laramie with "his personality and his up-tempo style of play and I think he caught us right there."
Fennis Dembo, the Cowboys' unquestioned leader and '87 SI cover boy, dropped this line about UW's new head coach: "Bang, he fit right in. It was like he'd been with us all along, like he was an assistant here or something. We'd seen him coach New Orleans in the NCAA tournament, and his guys beat Brigham Young, which we couldn't do. Then when we found out he was a Wyoming graduate, we knew he'd have the pride."
Dees led the Pokes to a 26-6 record during the 1987-88 season and a berth in the NCAA Tournament, the second straight trip to the Big Dance for Wyoming. He came back to Laramie with swagger and a southern drawl. He recruited with the best of them, selling the Dome of Doom and the Cowboy way of life at 7,220 feet above sea level. In his six seasons on the high plains, the Mount Vernon, Georgia product won 104 games and took the Cowboys to two postseason tournaments.
The 16th head coach in UW history died Tuesday. He was 86 years old.
Dees was responsible for bringing names like Reggie Slater, Tim Breaux and Theo Ratliff to Laramie. He also snagged other fan favorites like Bobby Traylor, Mo Alexander and Paris Bryant. And, of course, he inherited some of the best players this program has ever known in Eric Leckner, Jon Sommers, Sean Dent, Boyd and the "Dazzling Dude."
"Benny wore many hats with me, including teacher, disciplinarian and the person I looked to for encouragement. But the best hat of all was that of a friend. I will miss you, Coach Dees. Love you," Slater wrote on Facebook Tuesday morning.
Another former UW player, Robyn Davis said, "I would have never made it without him. (I'll) Always remember how he recruited me."
Dees came to Laramie on a baseball scholarship in 1957. He also lettered in hoops under legendary head coach Everett Shelton.
He started his own college coaching career in 1968 when he took over a brand new program, Virginia Commonwealth. After two seasons in Richmond, Dees moved on to New Orleans.
″I'm a very impatient person and highly competitive," Dees told the Associated Press during his introductory press conference. "So, I feel we'll move right into a good program and a good beginning."There, he led the Privateers to a 26-4 mark in 1986-87 and a berth in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
It's no wonder his alma mater came calling.
After six seasons in Laramie, Dees moved on to Western Carolina where for two seasons he led the Pirates.
Dees spent just two seasons at every stop in his college coaching career -- except for Laramie.
Benny was a high school athlete at Montgomery County High School and earned a scholarship to Brewton Parker Junior College where he played both basketball and baseball. After playing at Brewton Parker for 2 years, he was recruited by Georgia, Georgia Southern, and Middle Tennessee but decided to go to Wyoming to play baseball and basketball. After graduation, he played minor league baseball before returning to Georgia to begin his coaching career at Ware County and then at Manor before getting his first college opportunity at ABAC. After leaving ABAC, Benny started the basketball program at Virginia Commonwealth and became their first head coach. Benny's next college basketball opportunity was as an assistant coach at Western Kentucky. After which he spent the next few years back in south Georgia as a high school principal and coach before joining the basketball staff at Georgia Tech. He then headed to Tuscaloosa, Alabama to join Wimp Sanderson for six seasons as an assistant coach. But it was at the University of New Orleans that Benny led the Privateers to a first-ever appearance in the NCAA Tournament as a head coach. After leaving UNO, Benny set his sights on his alma mater, Wyoming, where he spent six seasons that included another trip to the NCAA Tournament. He returned to the South in 1993, for his final college coaching stint at Western Carolina. He finally headed home to Georgia to become principal at Montgomery County High School. But coaching was still in his blood and he coached at Toombs and Jeff Davis Counties before officially retiring from coaching in 2010. He loved coaching basketball and was inducted into the Brewton Parker and ABAC Halls of Fame. He also enjoyed his farm in Cedar Crossing where he raised cattle.
Benny loved Uvalda Methodist Church where he attended as a child and later boasted about being the oldest member of the church. He loved his players and friends, but his greatest joy was family. He is preceded in death by his parents Flournoy Pat Dees and Pearl Wolfe Dees, his first wife Marie Griffin Dees, and a grandson James Scott Wilson.
He is survived by his wife of 38 years Nancy Carter Dees; children Jennifer Dees Wilson and husband Scott Wilson, Johanna Dees Cabrera and husband Jose Cabrera, and Joshua Benjamin Dees and his wife Jenn Nunn Dees; grandchildren Katie and Emma Wilson, Stella, Marie, and Lydia Cabrera, Benny and Karlynn Dees, one sister Martha Dees Briant and husband Dr. Tom Briant, one brother Peter Dees and wife Delane Harrell Dees, several special nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
The funeral service will be held Saturday, March 27th, at 11:00 a.m. at the Uvalda United Methodist Church with Pastor Shareon Womack and Pastor Steven Toole officiating. Burial will follow at 3:30 on Saturday at Rose Hill Cemetery in Alma.
Flowers will be accepted, or memorial contributions may be made to Uvalda United Methodist Church, P.O. Box 173, Uvalda, GA 30473, or the Community Hospice Foundation, P.O. Box 2277, Vidalia, GA 30475.
Special thanks to Community Hospice of Vidalia and caregivers James Kelly, Ina Roberson, Ruby Givens, and Bobbie Fuller.
To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Benjamin F. Dees, please visit our floral store.∼LARAMIE -- Sports Illustrated once tabbed Benny Dees as a "short, plump, frosty-haired cartoonist's dream who could charm the hide off a buffalo."
Former Wyoming basketball star Turk Boyd told the national sports magazine back in 1987 that losing head coach Jim Brandenburg was "like a death in the family." That is until Dees showed up in Laramie with "his personality and his up-tempo style of play and I think he caught us right there."
Fennis Dembo, the Cowboys' unquestioned leader and '87 SI cover boy, dropped this line about UW's new head coach: "Bang, he fit right in. It was like he'd been with us all along, like he was an assistant here or something. We'd seen him coach New Orleans in the NCAA tournament, and his guys beat Brigham Young, which we couldn't do. Then when we found out he was a Wyoming graduate, we knew he'd have the pride."
Dees led the Pokes to a 26-6 record during the 1987-88 season and a berth in the NCAA Tournament, the second straight trip to the Big Dance for Wyoming. He came back to Laramie with swagger and a southern drawl. He recruited with the best of them, selling the Dome of Doom and the Cowboy way of life at 7,220 feet above sea level. In his six seasons on the high plains, the Mount Vernon, Georgia product won 104 games and took the Cowboys to two postseason tournaments.
The 16th head coach in UW history died Tuesday. He was 86 years old.
Dees was responsible for bringing names like Reggie Slater, Tim Breaux and Theo Ratliff to Laramie. He also snagged other fan favorites like Bobby Traylor, Mo Alexander and Paris Bryant. And, of course, he inherited some of the best players this program has ever known in Eric Leckner, Jon Sommers, Sean Dent, Boyd and the "Dazzling Dude."
"Benny wore many hats with me, including teacher, disciplinarian and the person I looked to for encouragement. But the best hat of all was that of a friend. I will miss you, Coach Dees. Love you," Slater wrote on Facebook Tuesday morning.
Another former UW player, Robyn Davis said, "I would have never made it without him. (I'll) Always remember how he recruited me."
Dees came to Laramie on a baseball scholarship in 1957. He also lettered in hoops under legendary head coach Everett Shelton.
He started his own college coaching career in 1968 when he took over a brand new program, Virginia Commonwealth. After two seasons in Richmond, Dees moved on to New Orleans.
″I'm a very impatient person and highly competitive," Dees told the Associated Press during his introductory press conference. "So, I feel we'll move right into a good program and a good beginning."There, he led the Privateers to a 26-4 mark in 1986-87 and a berth in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
It's no wonder his alma mater came calling.
After six seasons in Laramie, Dees moved on to Western Carolina where for two seasons he led the Pirates.
Dees spent just two seasons at every stop in his college coaching career -- except for Laramie.
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