Fred Handley Bennett

Fred Handley Bennett, 70, of Hampton, Georgia, departed this life on Tuesday, January 13, 2015 from sudden cardiac arrest. Born August 26, 1944 in Andalusia, Alabama to Lessie Mae Sirmon and Fred Blackmon Bennett, Fred proudly served on submarines of the U.S. Navy from 1960 to 1964. Upon his discharge, Fred courted his childhood neighbor and family friend Virginia Lovette Peters. They married on February 14, 1965 in the home of Rubye (Peters) Davis and Paul Davis. Fred and Lovette resided in Reseda, California when their first child, Karen Yvonne Bennett (Smith), was born, and in Montgomery, Alabama when their second and third children, Daniel Fred Bennett and Jonathan Chapman Bennett, were born. At the time of his death, Fred was beginning retirement after almost 30 non-consecutive years as an accountant with the William Carter Company. He enjoyed tinkering with cars, solving puzzles, and bass fishing with family and friends. He was a lifelong member of the Church of Christ.

Fred is survived by his wife of 50 years, Lovette; three children, Karen, Daniel, and Jonathan; six grandchildren, John Casey Smith, Alaina, Branson, Ethan, Dayton, and Ozias Bennett; his brother, Rufus E. Bennett, of Opelika, Alabama; and numerous nieces and nephews. Funeral services will be held at Leak Memory Chapel in Montgomery, Alabama, on Sunday, January 18, 2015 at 2:30 p.m., with Steve Vice officiating. Visitation will be held one hour prior to service at the funeral home. He will be laid to rest near his mother, Lessie, and his father, Fred, at Greenwood Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations in Fred’s memory to Georgia AGAPE (http://www.georgiaagape.org), or the Wounded Warrior Project (http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/).

Arrangements under the direction of Leak Memory Chapel, Montgomery, AL.