Ingeborg Benfield

Ingeborg Jobst Tyndall Benfield passed away peacefully on March 28, 2025, at the age of 94 at her home in New Bern surrounded by her large loving family. Inge was such a joy and blessing in the lives of anyone who knew or met her. Her resilience in life was only matched by the love she had for everyone around her.

Inge was born in Lage, Germany on February 14,1931, but at an early age, she moved with her parents and many siblings to Hammelburg, Germany (Bavaria) where she grew up skiing, playing Handball, cooking and baking with her mother and learning how to play the accordion. After World War II, she worked as a telephone operator and met Carlton (Carl) Croom Tyndall, an American soldier. They married in Hammelburg and moved to New Bern, NC to live on his family’s farm. Together they had 2 children but in 1954 her husband Carl passed away.

Several years later, Inge met Charlie William Benfield who was a widower with 5 children and the owner of Riverside Hardware. They married in 1962 and together they had 2 more children. Inge and Charlie raised all the children together in a wonderful home filled with much love and laughter, lots of sharing and lots of good food. They instilled in their children the values of working hard, staying humble, being grateful and helping others. Charlie passed away in 1992 and a few years later, Inge met Max Spaar, a businessman from Switzerland who was visiting New Bern. He soon became smitten with Inge and in 2003 he and Inge married. Together, they enjoyed travel and adventure in the USA and Europe until Max’s passing in 2013.

Throughout Inge’s life, she enjoyed cooking and baking. Walking into her kitchen was like walking into a bakery. She always had something sweet to offer. She was also an extremely talented seamstress sewing beautiful (and often matching) clothes for her many children. Inge was also blessed with the gift of music. She enjoyed singing, and playing the accordion, piano, guitar and many other instruments. Her love of the outdoors could be seen in the many hours she spent tending to her beautiful flower garden and the many flowers she planted in her yard. Inge, a devout Catholic, was a parishioner at St. Paul Catholic Church in New Bern for over 70 years. Tapping into her German Bavarian heritage, Inge also served as a member of New Bern’s German/Swiss club, Alpenverein. Her favorite memory with the Alpenverein was volunteering her time to prepare food for the Oktoberfests in New Bern, and of course wearing her German dirndl and playing the accordion for all the guests who came to enjoy the festive event.

Over the last several years, she volunteered her time and talents in the St. Paul Church Prayer Shawl Ministry, knitting and crocheting prayer shawls for those in need of comfort and strength.

Inge was someone with such a big heart, ironically, she was born with a type of heart valve disease called mitral valve prolapse. In 2000, at the age of 69 and under the care of Dr. Randolph Chitwood in Greenville, NC, joined by Dr. Wiley Nifong, she bravely made the decision to be the first participant in an FDA clinical trial using the Davinci Robot to make the mitral repair. In otherwise excellent health, she was a perfect candidate. Dr. Chitwood and Dr. Nifong made history by performing the first mitral valve repair surgery in the United States using robotic technology. Inge’s courage, faith and desire to quickly get back to her active lifestyle, paved the way for so many as the use of surgical robots on cardiac patients is now a standard of care worldwide.

Inge is preceded in death by her parents, Alfred Jobst and Maria Nelles Jobst, her husbands Carlton (Carl) Croom Tyndall, Charlie William Benfield and Maximilian (Max) Hans Spaar, her brothers, Elmar Jobst, Alfred (Fredy) Jobst, Benno Jobst and Hans-Werner Jobst, her sons, Charlie (Pete) Benfield and Carl Henry Tyndall.

She is survived by her dear siblings Gerda Jobst Andrews, Sullivan’s Island, SC and Günter Hubert Jobst (Hannalore), Essen, Germany, her devoted children, Martha Benfield Secor (Gene), Newnan, GA, Carol Tyndall Jarman (Johnny), New Bern, NC, Dr. Ronald Benfield (Pam), Statesville, NC, Connie Benfield Lorraine (Jim), Jetersville, VA, Bonnie Benfield Ramsey (Ricky), Garner, NC, Denise Benfield Kirkland (Jim), Raleigh, NC, and Christina Benfield Pearson (Kurt), Mebane, NC. Inge was also a loving Oma to 25 grandchildren, 35 great grandchildren and 3 great-great grandchildren.

The family will be forever grateful to the caregivers at Home Instead, and Cecelia, Hilda, and Wendy whose care and compassion supported the family to allow Inge to stay safe and well-loved in her home these last several months.

A Mass celebrating her amazing life will be held on Thursday, April 10, 2025, at 1:00 pm at St. Paul Catholic Church, 3005 Country Club Rd, New Bern, NC with Father Steven Costello officiating. Rite of Committal will immediately follow at the church’s cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Inge’s memory to:

St. Paul Catholic Church Building Fund

3005 Country Club Road

New Bern, NC 28562

Cotten Funeral Home is honored to serve the family and friends of Ingeborg Benfield.