Carroll Bennett

Carroll L. Bennett of Ankeny, Iowa, was born in Newton, Iowa on September 8, 1936. He passed away from an unexpected cardiac event on June 11, 2019 at Mercy Hospital in Des Moines. Carroll is survived by his wife of 60 years, Mary Jo (Peitzman) Bennett. He is also survived by four sons:

• Steven Bennett (Kristi) of Ankeny, their children: Andrew Bennett (Amber) of Ankeny and Hannah Behrens (Scott) of Ames. Andrew Bennett has two daughters, Gwenivere and Arwen.

• Scott Bennett (Karin) of Ankeny, their children: Jacob Bennett of Windsor Heights and Ellen Bennett of Des Moines.

• Michael Bennett (Michelle) of Ankeny, their children: Iris Bennett of Raleigh, North Carolina; Nat Bennett of Des Moines; Ethan Bennett of Iowa City; and Calen Bennett of Ankeny.

• Mark Bennett (Colleen) of Appleton, Wisconsin; their children: Colton Bennett of Atlanta, Georgia; Kate Bennett of Providence, Rhode Island; and Kyle Bennett of Appleton, Wisconsin.

Carroll was preceded in death by his parents, Erskine and Vina Bennett, and his brother, James Bennett (all of Newton, Iowa).

Carroll was very content with his life and attributed much of that to his family and friends. In 2002, he wrote:

"I want to make it clear that I’ve had a wonderful life – challenging, fulfilling, exciting and wonderful in every way. Few people I’ve known have traveled as much as Mary Jo and me, have as many grandkids, have four families they see often, love to be with their kids and grandkids, and have friends near and far that we love to be with and see. I don’t know if it could be better than it has been.

The first 18 years were exceptional mostly due to having two fine parents and a good extended family that was loving and supportive. The years since that were glorious because of Mary Jo – her love, understanding, patience, support, and stability. Without her, my life would have been very different, and far short of what it became."

Carroll attended the University of Iowa, and earned both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees there. He received a scholarship from the Maytag Foundation which allowed him to attend college. He was always very grateful for Maytag’s support – he knew how much it had changed his life. To give others the same opportunity that he experienced, Carroll and Mary Jo established the Bennett Family Scholarship at DMACC to fund tuition for deserving students. Carroll and Mary Jo met on a blind date to church while both at the University of Iowa in 1955. They had many happy memories of their time together in Iowa City including forming many lifelong friendships.

Carroll and Mary Jo were marvelous parents to their four sons. The boys particularly remember Saturday morning “Adventures” with Dad, which frequently involved trips to the railyard or the State Historical Building and usually ended with lunch at the downtown Des Moines Younkers coffee shop.

Carroll’s entire career was devoted to education. He valued it for himself, and he valued it for others. He began his career teaching in Estherville, Iowa and Ames, Iowa, then joined the small team starting the Des Moines Area Community College in Ankeny in 1967. He spent 30 years with DMACC in various leadership positions – one special opportunity was helping to form and open the DMACC campus in Newton, Iowa.

In 1972, Carroll was awarded a fellowship to the Washington Internship in Education program that brought a year in Washington, D.C. and an experience that would help him to grow his career. Also during his time at DMACC, Carroll led a delegation to Stavropol, Russia to visit their sister college. Even in retirement, Carroll was devoted to DMACC. He worked with a group of ‘DMACC Pioneers’ to help document the 50-year history of the community college. At the time of his death, he was working with a committee to document the Stavropol visit.

For many years, he served on accreditation teams with the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. After retiring from DMACC, he and his business partner Jane Hunter consulted with colleges seeking to acquire or retain accreditation from North Central.

Carroll and Mary Jo enjoyed more than 20 years of retirement together visiting 49 states (missing Hawaii, which, curiously, he never had a desire to visit) and 59 countries, including most of Europe, China, Vietnam, Russia, Japan, Egypt, New Zealand, and South Africa. He loved to visit with friends near and far, and was known for having to be nudged along from conversations with anyone he met along the way. The best times were to be found with family, and many of his travels were for family births, weddings, anniversaries, birthdays, and countless graduations. Carroll was exceptionally proud of the achievements of all of his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, and enjoyed spending time with all of his family.

Across the years, Carroll was proud to serve on many boards. At various times, he was on the Ankeny School Board, the Ankeny Library Board, the board at Mercy College of Health Sciences, the Skiff Medical Center in Newton, and Wesley Retirement Services. He was also a member of Rotary Club, served as president for a term, and helped out in other roles, including playing piano on many a meeting day.

While Carroll’s vocation was education, his avocation has always been music. He learned piano from a young age, and played throughout his life. To make extra money in college, he even played in a dance band. When children and grandchildren came along, there were funny songs to play and sing, like “Mr. Touchdown” and “The Choo-Choo Song.” Carroll also had a lifelong enjoyment of music as an audience member, and he loved attending live Broadway shows, symphony performances, and operas.

As for day-to-day life, Carroll enjoyed many of the little things, like coffee. To the confusion of family members, he even drank it with pizza. Days were always better when they started with coffee, and quite a few times, restaurant exits were delayed for “just finishing this cup.” Another daily ‘must’ for Carroll was reading. He especially enjoyed biographies, and found a warm welcome and many books at the library. Aside from reading, a frequent activity was photography; many a get-together was interrupted for a request to family to arrange themselves into the designated space. And with all of that travel, multiple scrapbooks and albums were filled with exotic photos. If Carroll wasn’t taking photos of family, he could often be found playing cribbage with them. He taught many of the grandchildren how to play, and they knew they’d done well if they occasionally won a game against Papa.

To everyone who knew him (and there are legions), Carroll showed interest and caring, and he formed permanent connections and friendships on what would seem to be the most ephemeral foundations. We’re sure he would have liked nothing better than to inspire others to do the same.

Friends and family are invited to a memorial gathering celebrating his life on Sunday, June 23 at the Ankeny Funeral Home with a visitation from 2:00 - 4:00 pm, and a service to follow at 4:00.

In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts can be made to the Des Moines Area Community College Foundation for the Bennett Family Scholarship either online at https://www.dmacc.edu/foundation/Pages/makeagift.aspx or by sending cash or check to: DMACC Foundation, ATTN: Shelby Nelson, 2006 S. Ankeny Blvd., Bldg. 22, Ankeny, IA 50023. Please make a note that the donation should be designated for the Bennett Family Scholarship in memory of Carroll Bennett.