Gordon Benjamin Scripps, age 52 of Cadillac, MI, passed away September 20, 2025, in Holland, MI.
On Christmas Day, 1972, we received a very special gift; Ben was born about 4:00 pm. He was named Gordon, after his paternal grandfather, and Benjamin, after his maternal grandfather.
Like most in the Scripps family, he went by his middle name. Those who knew him would agree, he was a gentle soul, friend to all. He had a great, contagious smile and a quick sense of humor.
From his early years, Ben knew exactly what he wanted to do in life and he wanted to work in television. Like with everything, to pick a college, he did his homework and decided he wanted to go to Central Michigan University which had a well-known School of Broadcasting. After CMU he went to work at Channels 9 & 10, the CBS station in Cadillac.
The old adage is that if you do what you love you’ll never work a day in your life. Whether it was lugging a video camera around in the rain on Friday nights to cover local high school football games (in his early years) to long sessions producing the news from the switcher board, Ben loved every minute of his time at 9 & 10 (but he was very clear that he had nothing to do with the new logo).
Ben had a lifelong dream to be on Jeopardy. In 2019 he took the online test, qualified to go to Chicago for the next step, where he was selected to be on the show. In March 2020 he flew to LA. They tape a week of shows in one day. This was the start of COVID so there was no audience. He won the first and second day, becoming a two-time Jeopardy Champion, earning just shy of $40,000.
Ben pursued a lifelong passion for golf. He belonged to the Cadillac Country Club and played often and was part of a group that regularly took trips to other courses in Northern Michigan.
Ben was preceded in death by his mother, Jane Scripps who died in 2011. He is survived by his father, Pat, stepmother, Angela and brother John Christopher Scripps.
The family invites those friends and family to gather to share stories and memories on Sunday, September 28 from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm at Dykstra Funeral Home, 188 W. 32nd Ave, Holland, MI and Wednesday, October 1, from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm at the Cadillac Country Club, 5676 East M55, Cadillac, MI
Ben requested to be cremated and will be interred at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to Hospice of Michigan.
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