04/16/08 - NNHS Newsletter - Betty Smith Bentien

Elizabeth Fauntleroy Smith Bentien
(d. 13 Apr 2008)

Newport News High School Class of 1929

Dear Friends and Schoolmates,   

   The sad news continues to arrive.   Betty Smith Bentien, Class of 1929, passed away in Newport News on Sunday, April 13, 2008 at the age of 95.

From the Daily Press - 04/16/08:  

             Elizabeth Fauntleroy Smith Bentien

 

NEWPORT NEWS - Elizabeth Fauntleroy Smith Bentien, 95, passed away Sunday, April 13, 2008. She was the widow of William A. Bentien and the last granddaughter of Dr. Humphrey Harwood Curtis and Maria Whitaker Curtis of End View Plantation.

A lifetime resident of the Denbigh area, she was preceded in death by her parents, Benjamin P. Smith, postmaster at Denbigh for many years; her mother, Mary Curtis Smith and a nephew, Dr. Benjamin D. Smith of Colonial Beach, Va.

She graduated from Newport News High School. During her senior year, she was 'Miss Warwick County' at the opening of the original James River Bridge span in Nov. 1928. After graduating from the College of William and Mary, she taught for a number of years in the Warwick County and Newport News School systems.

 

 
 


Mrs. Bentien was a member of Lebanon Christian Church, where she was organist for many years and a member of the Ladies Missionary Society. She was the first president of the Moore House Society CAR, a member and former regent of the Comte de Grasse Chapter National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, the Tidewater Regents Club, the Yorktown branch of the APVA and The Peninsula Campaign Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy. She was Honorary Mayor of Denbigh Day in 2003.

Survivors include her brother, Prentis P. Smith; niece, Nellie Smith Schultz; nephew, James P. Smith and his wife, Armanda, and several great-nieces and great-nephews.

A graveside service will be conducted at 1 p.m. Saturday, April 19, 2008, in Peninsula Memorial Park, officiated by pastor Dennis Worsham. The family will be at the residence from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, April 18, 2008.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Building Fund of Lebanon Church, 409 Yorktown Road, Newport News, VA 23603.

Peninsula Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Published in the Daily Press on 4/16/2008.
Guest Book
 
 
To the family and friends:
Please accept my deep condolences. " May the Almighty God sustain you with his watchful care.
C.N.A. of Home and Health Care Svs. (Yorktown, VA) - April 16, 2008
 
 
What a grand lady she was: She is going to be greatly missed, her warm smile, good heart and always willing to give of herself. We all can learn a lot from her - the way she lived and the love that she passed on to everyone who knew her.
Barbara and Ed West (Newport News, VA) - April 16, 2008
 
 
You will be missed dearly, I still remember when you made me those wonderful brownies when I won my first car show with my Volkswagen beetle. You were so wonderful to me and it was a pleasure talking to you on the weekends. I will miss you dearly.
Carl Ruff (Denver, CO) - April 16, 2008
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Mrs. Bentien was like my 3rd grandmother. She will be missed by my family.
CPT Freddy Moore (formerly Newport News, VA) - April 16, 2008
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Peg and I have lost a dear friend. She was a blessed person who touched many lives. She will be deeply missed by all who were fortunate to meet her.
Dennis Camp (Newport News, VA) - April 16, 2008
 
 
Mrs. Bentien will be dearly missed. All 3 of my children have fond memories of visiting her on their summer vacations over the past few years. She was a joy to converse with and a perfect host.
Eric Camp (Rochester Hills, MI) - April 16, 2008 
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Visiting Williamsburg in February and celebrating the two family February birthdays will never be the same. I always looked forward to visiting you, and getting letters back from you when I wrote! It was always so much fun to hear everything you were doing. Thank you for sharing your life with me! I'll miss you, Aunt Betty! Love always and forever, ~Krystal :o)
Krystal Van Tine (Troy, NY) - April 16, 2008
 
 
I first met Betty and Bill when I was 3 years old when my family moved onto Waterview. Betty and "Charlie Bill" were my best friends on the street until a few younger ones moved on the street a few years later. There will never be any best friend of a 3 year old like Betty and Bill. They are in my heart forever!
Leslie Harris (Yorktown, VA) - April 17, 2008 
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Mrs. Bentien was such a dear and gracious lady. She alway had a smile and made you feel special. I'll miss her interesting history lessons about her family. May the Lord bless and comfort your family during this difficult time.
JOYCE HAYTER SCHUH & ERLENE HAYTER (YORKTOWN, VA) - April 17, 2008 
 
 
Mrs. Bentien was a wonderful lady. I helped her in her yard in the summers and she would always invite me into her home to tell me stories, see how school was going, and share coke and cookies or cake with me. She will be greatly missed by my family and me.
Ashtyn Greene (Newport News, VA) - April 17, 2008 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

   Our deepest condolences are extended to Mrs. Bentien's family and friends at this time.

    From Jean Poole Burton ('64) of RI - 04/16/08 - "Elizabeth Fauntleroy Smith Bentien...":

Hi Carol,

 I am sure that this woman was a distant relative...  my grandmother was a Harwood and the family owned Endview... they are all buried at the Cemetery there at Lebanon Christian Church.

   It's strange how we sometimes locate our relatives, isn't it, Jean? You obviously are Mrs. Bentien's cousin, as her obituary says she was "the last granddaughter of Dr. Humphrey Harwood Curtis and Maria Whitaker Curtis of End View Plantation."

From http://www.endview.org/

     http://www.endview.org/history.html:

"Built in 1769 by William Harwood, the ‘T’- frame Georgian-style house renamed Endview in the 1850s, served as a Confederate hospital during the 1862 Peninsula Campaign.....By 1635, Captain Thomas Harwood, the grand ancestor of William Harwood, added the Endview lands to his holdings. Captain Harwood had emigrated from England in 1622 and eventually served as the Speaker of the House of Burgesses..... By the outbreak of the Civil War, Endview had passed out of direct ownership of the Harwood family and was purchased by William’s great-grandson Dr. Humphrey Harwood Curtis. The young doctor established his medical practice at the plantation in 1856 and married Maria Whitaker in 1858. The 1860 census shows that Curtis owned $8,000 worth of real estate, $21,000 worth of personal property and 12 slaves. About this time, Dr. Curtis changed the name of his property to Endview."

   As Mrs. Bentien was a member of the DAR, the complete records of this family should be very easy to locate.

   Thanks, Jean.

  Y'all take good care of each other!  TYPHOONS FOREVER!  We'll Always Have Buckroe!

                          Love to all, Carol

==============================================

NNHS CLASS OF '65 WEB SITE: http://www.nnhs65.00freehost.com

PERSONAL WEB SITE: http://www.angelfire.com/weird2/cluckmeat

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Carol Buckley Harty
219 Four Ply Lane
Fayetteville, NC 29311-9305
910-488-9408

Abide with Me

Words by Henry F. Lyte, 1847
Music by William H. Monk, 1861
 

Abide with me; fast falls the eventide;
The darkness deepens; Lord with me abide.
When other helpers fail and comforts flee,
Help of the helpless, O abide with me.

Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day;
Earth's joys grow dim; its glories pass away;
Change and decay in all around I see;
O Thou who changest not, abide with me.

Not a brief glance I beg, a passing word,
But as Thou dwell'st with Thy disciples, Lord,
Familiar, condescending, patient, free.
Come not to sojourn, but abide with me.

Come not in terrors, as the King of kings,
But kind and good, with healing in Thy wings;
Tears for all woes, a heart for every plea.
Come, Friend of sinners, thus abide with me.

Thou on my head in early youth didst smile,
And though rebellious and perverse meanwhile,
Thou hast not left me, oft as I left Thee.
On to the close, O Lord, abide with me.

I need Thy presence every passing hour.
What but Thy grace can foil the tempter's power?
Who, like Thyself, my guide and stay can be?
Through cloud and sunshine, Lord, abide with me.

I fear no foe, with Thee at hand to bless;
Ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness.
Where is death's sting? Where, grave, thy victory?
I triumph still, if Thou abide with me.

Hold Thou Thy cross before my closing eyes;
Shine through the gloom and point me to the skies.
Heaven's morning breaks, and earth's vain shadows flee;
In life, in death, O Lord, abide with me.

"Abide with Me" midi courtesy of http://www.mommydearest.com/midi.html - 06/01/06

"Abide with Me" lyrics and available history courtesy of http://synergy_2.tripod.com/lyrics/abide.html - 06/01/06

Greg Olsen Paintings courtesy of http://gregolsengallery.com – 03/15/05

Blackwork Flowers Divider Line clip art courtesy of http://www.bravenet.com - 08/12/04

CAR logo courtesy of http://www.fldar.org/main.htm - 04/16/08

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UDC logo courtesy of http://www.rootsweb.com/~laudc/clubs.htm - 01/13/08

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