Ben Allen Venable Jr.

Ben Allen Venable Jr. Lt. was 65 years of age at the time of his passing. He passed away surrounded by his family on Friday, November 8, 2024, at Mesilla Valley Hospice.

Ben was born in Grants, New Mexico on May 14, 1959, to Ben and Collene Venable. He had four siblings: Phyllis Denny (Warren), Jean Fortenberry (Terry), Norman Venable, and Eileen Venable.

Ben married Karen Venable on February 14, 1984, in Las Cruces, NM. They had two children, Azure and Donald.

Ben attended Mayfield High School, following graduation, he enlisted in the Marine Corps, then proceeded into law enforcement, graduating from the New Mexico Law Enforcement Academy on September 28, 1981. Ben served with the Hatch Police Department from 1980 to 1982. In 1983, he served for six months as Hatch Chief of Police. In 1982, he also served as Field Deputy for Sierra County Sheriff’s Department. From 1983 until his retirement in December 2000, Ben served various positions with the Dona Ana County Sheriff's Department. He was a member of the SWAT team, Search and Rescue Team, Dive Team Investigations, and even the DASO Football Team. He held positions of Field Deputy, Criminal Investigator, Metro Narcotic Agent, Patrol Sergeant Uniform Patrol Division, Sergeant in Charge Criminal Investigations Division, Shift Lieutenant Uniform Patrol Division, Hatch Sub Station Commander, Criminal Investigations Lieutenant, Senior Lieutenant-Day Shift Watch Commander. From 2001 to 2010, while in Corpus Christi, Texas, Ben held various security positions, as well as Crime Data Supervisor and Criminal Investigator/Sergeant for the Nueces County Sheriff’s Department. He was the Legal Investigator for the Watts Law Firm in Corpus Christi, Ben returned to Las Cruces in 2010, and as a retiree, he worked for three years with the Dona Ana County Sheriff’s Department Cold Case/ Missing Person Unit. He also worked various security positions in Las Cruces. Ben held over 50 New Mexico training certificates.

Ben loved the outdoors. He loved camping, gardening, walking the desert, and boon docking. The Gila Mountains and Elephant Butte Lake were his favorite camping sites.

Ben absolutely loved the Green Bay Packers, and he owned a piece of the pack, he was a shareholder of the team. He was able to attend several games at Lambeau Field and tailgated at the 1998 Superbowl in San Diego, California when the Packers played the Denver Broncos.

Ben was the president of the Blue Knights, TX XIV for four years. He was very active in the Relay for Life Dream Catchers. He was a member of the FOP in Texas and was a PADI Certified Search and Rescue Scuba Diver.

Ben is survived by his parents Ben And Collene Venable of Silver City, NM; his wife Karen Wilkins Venable, and his children; Shaylene Maag, Amber Christie (Eric), Whitney Porter, Azure Venable and Donald Venable (Lulu). Ben is survived by his grandchildren, Dorian, Dustin, Dillan, Chevy, Chole, Day, Damian, Brandon and Grayson. He is also survived by his great grandchildren Silas Maag and Lylah Christie.

Ben is preceded in death by his sister Phyllis Denny, and his brother Norman Venable.

Services will be held at 10:00 am on Thursday, November 21, 2024, at Getz Funeral Home. The viewing will be held on Wednesday, November 20, 2024, from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm at Getz Funeral Home.