Captain Ezekiel Benjamin
Name Ezekiel James Benjamin
Rank Captain
Character Information
| Gender | Male | |
| Species | Human | |
| Age | 47 | |
| Languages | Federation Standard |
Physical Appearance
| Height | 6'1" | |
| Weight | 195 Lbs | |
| Hair Color | Graying Black | |
| Eye Color | Hazel | |
| Physical Description | Graceful and charming in every way, Zeke carries himself as would a king; an air of aristocracy lingers about him. He stands at ease, yet always ready, and his gravitas is an immediately noticeable quality. He has black hair that is graying on the sides and hazel eyes that convey warmth, depth of character, and caring. He is tall, but not tall enough to draw attention to himself. It would seem as though He always had a charming grin on his face that shows his dazzling white teeth. Still, Zeke's most distinguishing quality is his voice: a soothing and commanding rich baritone. |
Family
| Spouse | Maria Walker-Benjamin | |
| Children | 1 son: Jacob (deceased) 1 daughter: Paris |
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| Father | Bishop James Benjamin | |
| Mother | Grace | |
| Brother(s) | Hezekiah | |
| Sister(s) | Amariah |
Personality & Traits
| General Overview | Zeke is a natural-born moral leader, full of passion as well as patience. He has a strong belief in the importance of integrity and nobility in every action that he takes, and seeks to reach out and inspire others to achieve those same standards of nobility within themselves. With a natural confidence that begets influence over others, Zeke takes a great deal of pride and joy in guiding others to work together to improve themselves and their community. He is a genuine, caring personality who takes great joy in making a difference and changing hearts and minds. He does not like to play the blame game or any game at all, for that matter. At times, Zeke's idealism can get the best of him and push him to pursue dreams that those around him simply don't see. He can be too selfless and can forget to take care of himself for all that he's doing for other people. He can, at times, be too sensitive, but typically keeps his negative emotions private, unless the situation demands otherwise. |
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| Strengths & Weaknesses | [+] Tolerant [+] Reliable [+] Charismatic [+] Altruistic [+] Natural Leader [-] Overly Idealistic [-] Too Selfless [-] Too Sensitive [-] Fluctuating Self-Esteem [-] Struggles to Make Tough Decisions |
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| Ambitions | Zeke has always aspired to live a simple life surrounded by people he loves and has done that by building a family, though has rarely been allowed the time to enjoy it. He desires to help others, and while he prefers to do this in a low profile, one on one, fashion, his life has not made this possible. Service in Starfleet has provided him with many opportunities to do good things for others. | |
| Hobbies & Interests | Zeke loves to curl up and read a good book. He also likes to spend time around other people, particularly engaging in deep and meaningful discussion. He is an avid chess player and, though he wouldn't admit it, enjoys video games more than people would think appropriate for his age. |
| Personal History | Ezekiel James Benjamin was born in Seattle, Washington to James and Grace Benjamin. He was the youngest of three and always found himself the baby of the family. His older brother, Hezekiah, and his older sister, Amariah, were both older than him by a decade and more. During the years after his brother and sister moved out of the house and began lives of adulthood, he found himself, strangely, an only child. In that time, he got special attention that the older-two never seemed to receive. His father, James Benjamin, was a Pastor, and later a Bishop in the United Christian Church. As a result, Zeke grew up in a household that was devout, but not conservative. He was constantly encouraged by his parents to keep an open mind and to test his own understanding of truth as well as keep to the faith and form important and life-long convictions. Though he, like many, went through a brief phase of doubt, Zeke has always remained an strong and devout Christian man in a time where faith, particularly in his God, was unusual and unpopular. From an early age, Zeke possessed a powerful gift for singing which developed as his voice molded into a deep, rich baritone much like his father's. He often sang in church and school and even directed his church choir. He often found, in this stage of his life, that his academic success came as a result of his musical success and music served as his "cash cow". After some ambitious auditions, Zeke found himself accepted to the University of Michigan's school of music. After spending a few years away from home studying voice, Zeke developed powerful skills with his instrument and began to sing professionally in the areas around campus. He found, after some deep thought and changes in his life, that perhaps a career in music wasn't his highest calling. Some recruiters from Starfleet caught his attention and encouraged him to pursue a career of service in some capacity in the fleet. After graduation and consultation with his parents, Zeke enrolled at Starfleet Academy with a Tactical Concentration and pursued a masters degree in logistics management and a minor music studies focus. His years at the academy, particularly at the beginning, were difficult. He was not accustomed to a lifestyle that was quite so structured and had a bit of difficulty studying practical skills rather than art and people skills. He would serve as a great leader in time because of his background, but in the academy, it had very little value. He studied weapons and security protocol and lead a very healthy social life, but his joy still remained his music studies and his participation as a member of the academy's Cadet Chorale. During his time at the academy, he met a local waitress named Maria Walker. He pursued her with great charm and consistency, and she eventually agreed to date him. Just before his junior year, they were married. She soon found out she was pregnant and, soon after their son, Jacob, was born. He certainly didn't graduate at the top of his class, but he did graduate and was assigned as a tactical officer aboard the USS Kentucky as an Ensign. The Kentucky was a small ship, and there was very little in the way of tactical and security work to be done. He used this opportunity to socialize, perfect his skills, and become accustomed to life aboard a starship. It was difficult for him to be away from his wife and son, but the Kentucky was part of the home fleet, so he got to visit Earth very often. Just before his promotion to Lieutenant JG, Maria became pregnant with their daughter, Paris. After two more years of service, Zeke was granted a promotion to Lieutenant and stationed aboard a different ship in the home fleet, the USS Churchill, as Chief Security/Tactical Officer. He found himself home less as the Churchill's assignments were more demanding and time consuming. He had also become a member of the senior staff, which carried additional responsibilities. He served aboard the Churchill for five years, before his forced transfer to the outer-edges of Federation space. As Chief Strategic Ops and Second Officer. Lieutenant Commander Benjamin had a difficult time being so far away from his family and, at times, wouldn't see them for months at a time. After two years, he was promoted to Commander and made Executive Officer. Starfleet had discovered long ago that Zeke had extreme promise as a leader and commander. He was competent and very good at inspiring the men and women under his leadership. The Portland ran blockades against pirating of cargo-ships, so he became battle-ready in his role as XO. He even got to try his hand at assisting in diplomatic encounters on several occasions. One day, he received word via subspace that his son, Jacob, had been killed. He had always been one of those people who were interested in old technologies and died in an accident on his motorcycle. Zeke took an extended leave and returned to Earth in time for the funeral and was convicted to be with his family as they worked through this crisis. Eventually, he accepted a job on Earth to avoid having to leave again, as director of the Starfleet Academy Cadet Chorale, a group that had truly made his time at the academy special. The music they made together was a great boon for him as he worked through feelings of loss and sorrow. After five years, Starfleet insisted upon a new assignment for him in a command role. He had been resisting them for quite some time, but it seemed they were done waiting and ordered him to take command of the USS Berlin immediately. He was pleased that, this time, he was allowed to bring his wife and daughter with him. After taking a week to prepare for a new life, Zeke was promoted to Captain and shipped off with his family to his first command. |
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| Service Record | UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN Music Performance - Voice STARFLEET ACADEMY Security and Tactical Concentration Logistics Management Masters Program Music Studies STARFLEET USS Kentuky + Promoted to Ensign - Age 26 - Assigned as Tactical Officer + Promoted to Lieutenant JG - Age 28 - Made Assistant Tactical Officer USS Churchill + Promoted to Lieutenant - 30 - Assigned as Chief Security/Tactical Officer USS Portland + Promoted to Lieutenant Commander - Assigned as Chief Strategic Operations and Second Officer - 35 +Promoted to Commander - Assigned as Executive Officer - 37 STARFLEET ACADEMY CADET CHORALE - Hired as Director - 42 USS BERLIN +Promoted to Captain - Assigned as Commanding Officer - 47 |