Dr. Benjamin Goodman, Jr., passed away on Thursday, August 3, 2023, at the age of 77, surrounded by family and loved ones. He was born February 20, 1946, in Hickory, NC to Dr. Benny Goodman, Sr and Peggy Goodman, and was the oldest of four children.
Ben was a loving husband, parent, grandparent, sibling, doctor and friend to many in the Hickory community. Ben practiced medicine for 51 years, of which 10 years were alongside his father. Combined, he and his father, Dr. Benny Goodman, Sr., served the Hickory community for nearly a century as family physicians.
Ben was a 1964 graduate of Hickory High School, a 1968 graduate of Davidson College, and a 1972 graduate of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Medical School. He completed his Family Medicine residency at Penn State in 1975. He also served the U.S. Army for 12 years retiring as a Lt Colonel. He was chosen to attend the National Endowment for the Humanities in Religious Studies at Harvard University in 1978. One of his proudest moments was an article that he authored in the American Journal of Medicine related to Temporal Arteritis – along with numerous articles and other medical journals. He was a member of the American Academy of Family Physicians and the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine. He also served as Professor and Director of Family Medicine Residency at Medical University of South Carolina from 1977-1988 where he met his nurse and wife of 43 years, Martha Goodman.
Ben and Martha have two surviving children, Robert Goodman of Bluffton, SC and Caroline McKinney of Hickory, NC. Robert, and his wife Karen, have a daughter, Sophia. Caroline, and her husband Kyle, have five children, Harper, Connor, Sawyer, Hunter and Grace. He was preceded in death by his third child, Eryan, in 2001. Ben was particularly close to his sister, Kathryn, and her husband, Lamar Lehman, and their children, Katy Lehman (Paul Brown) of Atlanta, GA and Pat Lehman (Melissa, Owen and Emory), of Greensboro, NC.
Ben had a tremendous love for his family, the care of his many beloved patients, baseball (go Braves!), reading, photography and everything UNC Tarheels. He will be remembered by many driving his red Mazda Miata around town with his treasured dog, Bob.
Please join us to celebrate Ben’s life at 2 p.m. on Sunday, August 6, 2023, at First Presbyterian Church, 237 2nd St NW, Hickory, NC 28601 with the Rev. Richard Floyd officiating. The family will receive friends following the service in the fellowship hall.
Please bring your favorite memory or story to share with our family.
Donations can be made to the following – or charity of your choice:
Autism Society of North Carolina, Attention: Donations, 5121 Kingdom Way, #100, Raleigh, NC 27607 or Lupus Foundation of America, North Carolina Chapter, https://www.lupus.org/northcarolina/donate-now-1 .