Blanche Napier Bennett

Blanche Napier Bennett died Saturday, July 18th, surrounded by two generations of her loving family. Blanche was born January 21, 1923 to Ethel Kilburn and Walter Napier in Lee County, Kentucky. She spent her childhood in Rising Sun, Indiana, until the age of 16 when her mother died. She then lived with an aunt and her family in Portsmouth, Ohio and graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1942, and proceeded to attend Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond. At Eastern Blanche met the love of her life, A. L. Bennett at a dance in the Student Union. A. L. was stationed at Camp Campbell before being sent to Germany to serve in WWII. Their first date was on Halloween, 1943 and they were married March 4, 1944. After A. L. returned from the service, they made their first home in Vet’s Village at Oklahoma A & M, and began their family with the birth of their first child Carol. After graduation in 1949 they moved to Bartlesville and subsequently on to other cities, including Oklahoma City, where their son A. L., Jr. was born, then back to Bartlesville, then to Amarillo, Denver, Bartlesville once again, Lubbock, and finally Tulsa in 1969. With each move, Blanche’s purpose was to make each new house into a home for her family, and at this she excelled. The homes were full of love, laughter, friends, encouragement, warmth and extended family. Home was a haven. Blanche set an example of selfless giving, putting the needs of others first. In her twenties with two young children tagging along, she took older neighbors to the grocery store, or to run errands, took a physically challenged young woman to appointments. She was PTA president in three different schools her children attended and was active in the League of Women Voters. In Tulsa, Blanche was a volunteer at St. Francis Hospital for close to 40 years. Blanche believed that good deeds only mattered if no one knew about them. She was a woman of strong faith and a lifelong member of the Disciples of Christ denomination, a member in Tulsa of Yale Avenue Christian Church until her health no longer permitted her to attend. Blanche doted on her three granddaughters and nine great-grandchildren, who all live in the Tulsa area, and they likewise sought her counsel, a good game of Rumicube, and the candy and toys she always had for them. She was involved in their lives and helped them pursue their interests. Christmas was a special event that took on epic proportions for Blanche, who baked, made special gifts of her beautiful knitting and other needlework items. She was truly Mrs. Claus! The Oaks Country Club was Blanche and A. L.’s second home. Sunday afternoons, plus several weekdays were spent on the links followed by fellowship in the grill with friends. The family of Blanche is thankful for her presence in our lives and for the family life she provided. We are thankful for her long life, but she will be so missed in so many ways. Her sense of humor and witty asides are well known, her kindness and acceptance of others, her unconditional love, her way of looking at the positives in life. She is in the presence of her God and with her husband who she has greatly missed in the seven years since his passing. May all she represented in life be perpetuated by her descendants and the world will be a better place. Blanche is survived by her daughter Carol (David) Sollars, son A. L. (Terri) Bennett, granddaughters Jana (Chas) Ketchel, Jennifer (John) Miller, Julie (Paul) Gillett, and great-grandchildren, Grant and Caroline Ketchel, Joshua and Reagan Miller, and Gavin, Keely and Logan Foley, and Hayden and Aubrey Gillett, and Denise Ensing, her devoted and caring friend. She is also survived by her sister Joy (Eldric) Hazeldean of Madison, Indiana, and nieces and nephews, and her beloved dachshund Oscar. A Memorial Service will be held 2:00 p.m. Thursday at Fitzgerald Southwood Colonial Chapel, 918-291-3500.

Blanche Napier Bennett

January 21, 1923 - July 18, 2015