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Funeral held in Waukon for Iowa State Trooper who died after traffic accident

Published

3 years ago

October 27, 2021

Hundreds of people, including many law enforcement officers, filled the Waukon High School gymnasium on Wednesday for the funeral of an Iowa State trooper, who died from injuries received from a car crash in the line of duty.

Trooper Ted Benda was a graduate of Waukon High. Dozens of people lined the streets of Waukon after the funeral, as Benda’s body was taken to an area cemetery.

Benda was hurt Oct. 14 in a single-vehicle crash near Postville, Iowa, while en route to help the Clayton County Sheriff’s Office with a wanted suspect. He died at Gundersen Health System in La Crosse, six days after the accident.

The 37-year-old Benda had been with the state patrol five years. He is survived by his wife, Holly, and their four daughters. The youngest child was born last month.

Benda was the second Iowa State Trooper to die in the line of duty this year.

Brad Williams

A native of Prairie du Chien, Brad graduated from UW - La Crosse and has worked in radio news for more than 30 years, mostly in the La Crosse area. He regularly covers local courts and city and county government. Brad produces the features "Yesterday in La Crosse" and "What's Buried on Brad's Desk." He also writes the website "Triviazoids," which finds odd connections between events that happen on a certain date, and he writes and performs with the local comedy group Heart of La Crosse. Brad been featured on several national TV programs because of his memory skills.