Fred Garig Benton

Fred G. Benton Jr. gently passed into the hands of God during the early morning hours of Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2012. Born on Dec. 13, 1924, in Baton Rouge, he was one of three children born to Fred G. Benton Sr. and Emma Cockerham Benton. He achieved the rank of Eagle Scout, showing early signs of the civic leader he would become. He graduated from Baton Rouge High School in 1942 and not long thereafter joined the U.S. Navy durring World War II. He served on the naval destroyer USS Black. When the war ended, he was a naval air cadet. He attended LSU and married his lifelong bride, Courtney Benton, on the 26th day of January, 1947. Of their loving union, six children were born, namely Fred Garig Benton III, Elizabeth Grace Benton, Steve Harrison Benton and wife Sheran, Emily Benton Harper, William Hart Benton, M.D. and wife Beth and Amy Benton Query. He graduated from the LSU Law School in 1951 and joined his father, Fred G. Benton Sr., in the practice of law, specializing in municipal bonds. He would become a pre-eminent bond attorney. He extended to both large and small governmental entities his expertise, working to build new firehouses, schools, roads and bridges. He was the bond attorney for the city of Baton Rouge for more than 30 years. He did the bond work necessary for the development and construction of the East Baton Rouge governmental complex, including the Performing Arts Theater, Centroplex and new courthouse complex. He was a past president of the John James Audubon Society. He was a close friend and counsel to T. Harry Williams (author: Huey P. Long). He was the executive director for many years for the Skyorama Air and Plane Show, which annually showcased such attractions as the Blue Angels, Thunderbirds and Golden Hawks. He was a past president of the Navy League and was one of the guiding forces behind the effort to bring the USS Kidd Veterans Memorial&Museum to Baton Rouge. He worked tirelessly for the creation of the Arts and Science Center of Baton Rouge, crafting legislation and successfully presenting the same to the Louisiana Legislature. He was named "Volunteer of the Year" by the Arts and Humanities Council of Baton Rouge, and pushed for the creation of the first Fest For All, an annual celebration of the arts in Baton Rouge. He assumed representation of the Tunica Indian Tribe in a pro-bono role, litigating to a successful conclusion the return of burial ground artifacts to the Tunica Tribe. At the request of the Tunica Tribe, he personally arranged to have the Tunica burial ground consecrated. He ultimately pushed with others to create a state park at the Tunica site, thereby forever protecting the sanctity of the Tunica Tribe (Trudeau Plantation State Park). He assisted his father in the drafting of legislation that created the Baton Rouge Recreation and Park Commission, the brainchild of his mother, Emma Cockerham Benton. He worked tirelessly to assert that all men were in fact created equal, and worked as part of a team of black and white citizens to create the first black owned and operated savings and loan association in the state of Louisiana, serving on the initial board of directors. He volunteered as a pilot to fly missions as part of the Civil Air Patrol. He was a member of the Eagle Scout Review Group, whose job it was to review and test Eagle Scout candidates. He and his siblings developed Magnolia Woods Subdivision, establishing during the early '50s the concept of a neighborhood swimming pool, and donating land for the creation of the club. He personally delivered his Piper J-3 airplane to various air shows in Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida, for the use of the "Flying Professor" (Capt. Dick Schram, U.S. Navy). He was the tireless force behind the preservation of the Port Hudson Commemorative Area, spending thousands of hours walking over the ground, talking with landowners and ultimately being successful in the establishment of the Port Hudson State Park, thereby preserving the history and memories of fallen soldiers. He was a past recipient of the Golden Deeds award. He was an unsuccessful candidate for mayor, during which he urged the citizens to focus upon the need to make the hard decisions necessary to invest in the capital improvements that would allow Baton Rouge to continue to grow. He was a patron of the arts, providing space on his personal property for many artists to ply their craft. He personally built his home (placing a bomb shelter 12 feet beneath the ground). Bond lawyer, orator, patriot, real estate developer, public advocate, photographer, potter, amateur archaeologist, would-be blacksmith, pilot, warrior, author, naturalist, printer, beekeeper, landscape architect, God's servant, Man's Servant, loving husband and father, Fred G. Benton Jr., was a man for all seasons and lived his life challenging, pushing and pressing those around him to achieve. "It is the constant and determined effort that breaks down all resistance and sweeps away all obstacles." - Claude M. Bristol. "Let us not be content to wait and see what will happen, but give us the determination to make the right things happen." - Peter Marshall. "Man cannot discover new oceans until he has the courage to lose sight of the shore" unknown, but likely Fred G. Benton Jr. "I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, move from here to there, and it will move." (Matthew 17:20). He is survived by his wife of 65 years; sister, Mary Benton Kenyon and husband Leon; and brother, Thomas H. Benton and wife Jody. He is also survived by his six children, grandchildren, Heidi Benton Knapp, Denver, Austin Katelyn, Benjamin, Frances, Caroline, Nathan and Mitchell Benton, Courtney and William Harper, Reagan and Warren Samuel, Emily Benton Ryan, Matthew, Harrison and Elizabeth Query; great-grandchildren, Tanner and Kiera Knapp, Nathan Ryan, Denali, Marley and Gabriel Benton; and many nieces and nephews. Pallbearers will be David Norwood, Fred, Steve and Bill Benton, Benjamin, Denver and Austin Benton, Warren Samuel, William Harper, Matthew and Harrison Query. Special thanks to all the loving caregivers, especially Lucy, Mary, Destiny, Cindy and Alicia. Visitation at Rabenhorst Funeral Home, 825 Government St., on Wednesday, Feb. 8, was from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Visitation continues at 11 a.m. Thursday at First Presbyterian Church, 763 North Blvd. Funeral service to follow at noon. Burial with U.S. Navy honors at Port Hudson National Cemetery, 20978 Port Hickey Road, Zachary, at 1:30 p.m. Thursday. Memorials would be appreciated to USS Kidd, Louisiana Arts&Sciences Center or St. Joseph Hospice.