Milton Benjamin (“Ben”) Roach, age 58, passed from this life into the next while at home on March 15, 2026. He was born in Jackson on October 6, 1967, as the fourth child and youngest son of John M. Roach and Nancy S. Roach. He grew up in Jackson and attended school at St. Andrew’s Episcopal School from Pre-K through sixth grade and then attended Jackson Preparatory School from the seventh through the 12th grade, graduating in the spring of 1986. While at Jackson Prep, he played football and ran track and many of his fondest memories from those years were of times he shared with the teammates and friends he made there. Yet he remained close with his friends from earliest childhood for the majority of his life. He was also active in his church at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Cathedral in downtown Jackson where he served as an acolyte, and became very involved in his EYC Youth group, and attended sessions at Camp Bratton-Green, the summer camp and retreat center of the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi.
Throughout high school and college, Ben worked after school, weekends, summers and holidays at The Rogue Gentlemen’s Clothing store where he was known for his warm personality and his infectious smile and laugh. He seldom met a stranger and lived by the motto he learned while working for Mr. Billy Neville at The Rogue, “A stranger is just a friend whom you’ve not yet met.” Some of his most enduring friendships were among his co-workers from those years, and his genuine concern for others made him a natural fit for retail sales and customer relations. He attended the University of Mississippi from which he earned his B.A. degree in general business administration and management in 1991. While at Ole Miss he was a member of the Mississippi Alpha Chapter of Phi Delta Theta fraternity. After college, his talents at marketing and client procurement took him first to Washington, D.C. where he worked in fund-raising campaigns primarily for non-profit organizations and charitable foundations. At various intervals, his career took him to locations all across the nation but eventually he returned home to Jackson where he focused on marketing, advertising and capital campaigns for both the nonprofit and private enterprise sectors.
Ben was preceded in death by his parents, John Morris Roach and Nancy Stallings Roach, and by his maternal grandparents James Benjamin Stallings and Lorene Jumper Stallings and paternal grandparents Milton Legget Roach and Annie Caroline Morris Roach, and uncle James Rex Stallings. He is survived by his siblings Caroline Roach Duncan (Duane), Susan Roach Nix (Jimmy), and Dan Roach (Holli), a dozen nieces and nephews, and 10 great-nieces and nephews.
A requiem Eucharist was celebrated at the Cathedral of St. Andrew in downtown Jackson on Saturday, March 21. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to St. Andrew’s Cathedral, to Magnolia Recovery and Wellness Foundation, to YANA Club of Mississippi, or to the charity of your choice.
