Eugene Benway Kordahl

Humanity – in service to others. Nature – the symphony of nature: flora, fauna, the sky. Reason – consider information from all angles. These words describe the elements of his purpose in life. In a span of 89 years, Eugene Kordahl served in the Navy as a journalist and a member of the Underwater Demolition team; in customer service for Pan American Airways; as a personal aide to President Eisenhower; as a law enforcement officer, and while with AT&T, he was instrumental in pioneering the 800 phone number system for a major car rental company; and in the fledgling telemarketing industry. He wrote a book titled Telemarketing for Business published in 1978 and taught a course on marketing as an adjunct professor for New York University.

“I’m a New Yorker,” Eugene would declare despite being born in Portland Oregon. He was born Eugene Benway Benoit, Jr. on June 22, 1936, to his mother, Marie Violet Weber Benoit and his father, Eugene Benway Benoit Sr., in Portland, Oregon. His father, an Ojibwe tribal chief, was a journalist in the Works Project Administration (WPA) during the Great Depression and later a union organizer. At the start of WWII Eugene Sr. died on Pearl Harbor Day (Dec. 7, 1941). The family then moved to Minnesota where upon graduation from high school, Eugene was activated for the Korean Conflict along with his Naval Reserve Battalion.

In New York as a young man Eugene fell in love with the city, his work, and his first wife, Ann, with whom he shares a son, Clayton Charles Kordahl. Eugene loved to converse with others. Responding to an ad seeking someone to repair an historic model sailing ship, he met and became friends with Dr. John D. Clark, an American rocket fuel developer and author, and through Doc Clark Eugene met and enjoyed friendships with members of the Trapdoor Spiders, a Greenwich Village group of writers, self-styled as a “male only, eating, drinking and arguing society.”

In 1976, while with AT&T in Kansas City, MO, he met and fell in love again with his second wife, Fran, with whom he founded National Telemarketing Inc., and enjoyed extensive international travel, Always a dog lover, Eugene was introduced to the joy of small poodles by Fran and from then on miniature poodles, and now a toy poodle, have been members of Eugene’s family. Fran passed away from cancer in 1987. In 1992, he married his third and last wife, Elizabeth (Betsey) Schroeder Douglass, whom he first met in 1983. She vividly remembers their first meeting in 1983, describing his personality as “a force to be reckoned with.”

Eugene was a lifelong learner, always seeking to expand his knowledge. He was a historian particularly interested in the John Paul Jones, the American Revolution, US Civil War and archeology. They lived in New Orleans for a time, owning a sailboat, Serenity, which Eugene often sailed on Lake Pontchartrain. thousands of criminal trials regarding procedures, defendant’s rights and equity behind the closed courtroom doors, and then helping set up training for other volunteers. After hurricane Katrina, Eugene and Betsey moved to Sacramento, California to live near family.

After hurricane Katrina, Eugene and Betsey moved to Sacramento, California to live near family. Family members describe Eugene as a kind man, particularly to children and animals. He was loving, gregarious, well dressed, and always welcomed family gatherings. He passed away surrounded by family on February 15, 2026. A Service of Thanksgiving in honor of his life will be held on Saturday, April 11, 2026, at 11:00 AM in Sierra Vista Community Church, Sacramento, CA.