SGM (Ret) Daniel T. Benson-McCarthy, age 56, of Centreville, died on July 21, 2016, after a 14-month battle with pancreatic cancer. He is survived by his beloved wife of 19 years, Margaret L. Benson-McCarthy, and his much loved daughter, Abigail who were both present at his passing. He is also survived by his caring mother, Gerda McCarthy of New York. At the time of Daniel’s death he was surrounded by many of his loving family members, who traveled from all over the country to be with him, including his twin brother, Dennis McCarthy from Texas and his sister Maureen Kaus from New York. Also included at the time of his passing were many nieces, nephews and in-laws from all over the country.
Daniel retired from the U.S. Army after serving his country for 30 years. He was as an intelligence operations analyst and this expertise sent him to live overseas for almost 50 percent of his career. In addition to his service at the Central Army Group (NATO) in Germany, he served at the U.S. Army Intelligence Threat Analysis Center, Washington, D.C. and the Combat Support Coordination Team in Korea. His last assignment before retiring was at the Joint Intelligence Center Pacific, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Before returning to the Pacific Command Joint Intelligence Operations Center, SGM Benson-McCarthy served with Combined Forces Command-Afghanistan, Kabul. This experience transferred to civilian companies in Northern Virginia, where his wife, Margaret and his daughter, Abigail still reside.
Among the many awards he earned in his 30-year career, three were the Bronze Star Medal, The German Armed Forces Weapons Qualification in Bronze and he holds the U.S. Army Intelligence Corps’ Knowlton Award.
After retiring, Daniel’s passion turned toward sabre fencing, placing him 24th in the country for Vet50 Men’s Sabre. He shared this passion with his daughter, Abigail.
Memorial Services will be held Saturday, Aug. 13, at 5 p.m. at the Virginia Academy of Fencing, located at 5401-B Port Royal Rd., Springfield, VA 22151, phone number 703-321-4922.
In lieu of flowers, the family would like guests to consider a donation to the National Fencing Foundation for the Abigail Benson-McCarthy College Fund. One hundred percent of these proceeds will go towards her college education. The National Fencing Foundation is a 501 C(3) organization so all donations are tax-deductible. The donation address is the following: National Fencing Foundation, The Abby Benson-McCarthy College Fund, c/o Russell Wilson, 7815 Rolling View Lane, Apt 101 Springfield, VA 22153. The date and time for burial at Arlington National Cemetery will be announced once the information becomes available.