RICHARD G. "JERRY" BENSON

1935 - 2020

September 28, 1935 -
April 24, 2020

Richard Gerald Benson, known to many in the valley he called home for over eight decades as Jerry, the farmer-philosopher of Bow, was a true 'Renaissance Man' who brought considerable energy and prowess to all of his various pursuits.

As famous for his lengthy treatises on the theory of Intelligent Design as his skill for getting the maximum price per bushel for local grain growers, perhaps his most treasured attribute was his beautiful tenor voice, which graced the area's churches, funeral services and Sons of Norway halls for many years.

Jerry, a kind, funny and generous man, recently departed his earthly home and now sits at the side of his Lord and Savior, philosophizing, singing, telling stories and, no doubt, feasting on Lutefisk and Lefse.

First-born to Sigurd and Thordys Benson, the children of Norwegian immigrants who settled on the verdant Samish flats, Jerry was a precocious child and the 'apple of the eye' to his mother, aunts and many dozens of relatives in the Bow-Edison area.

He was later big brother to his beloved sisters Joyce and Janet, who, much to his chagrin at the time, soon diverted some of the affection that he had grown used to.

He spent his early school years at the old Edison School, which had seen many Benson, Rodvelt and Omdahl relatives pass through it's halls since being built in 1914 (go Spark Plugs!) Later, his sons Erik and Jason attended the school, completing a three generation cycle in the 80+ years the old brick building was in existence.

At Burlington-Edison High School, he excelled in his studies, along with football, basketball and golf. As quarterback for the Tigers, his main duty was to hand the ball off to Fitzgerald, an all-state running back. The offensive line was told by Coach Bacoka to "open up a hole even Lardbucket could make it through", referring to his slow-footed quarterback. He was also a member of the very first BEHS golf team.

Jerry graduated from Pacific Lutheran College in 1958 with a degree in business and immediately thereafter flew to Rhode Island to the Navy Officers Training School.

Lieutenant Benson became the gunnery officer on a destroyer, the Leonard F. Mason, which was home-ported in San Diego, but spent considerable time in Kakuska, Japan.

Jerry returned to Skagit County after completing his service in 1963 to work for his cousin at Duane Berentson Investments and look for a "country girl" for a wife.

He often ate lunch at Bakke's Café in Burlington, where he enjoyed talking to the owner and cook, Ruth Bakke. In his not-so-subtle way, Jerry eventually told Ruth he wanted to marry her daughter and buy her cafe! 18 months later Jerry and Sharon were married and soon they were the proud owners of what became The Hanger Cafe across the street from BEHS.

In 1968, Jerry and Sharon welcomed their first son, Erik, into the world, followed by Bryan in 1970 and David in 1972. They rounded out their family of four boys with the birth of Jason in 1976. Jerry and Sharon also welcomed two foster sons, Orin Foldvik and Mitch Fraas, to join their young family in the early '70's.

Jerry was a skilled fund raiser and, with his friend David Berntsen, raised funds for Pacific Lutheran University through the Q Club. He was honored to be an alumnus of the year in 1977.

Over the years, Jerry served on the Lutheran Bible Institute board of directors as well as the Burlington-Edison school board and was an active member of the Skagit County Republicans. He enjoyed serving in many different capacities at Edison Lutheran and Bethany Covenant Churches.

As mentioned above, Jerry sang for many events, often in duet with Sharon, all over Northwest Washington.

'Feeding the world' was important to Jerry and he joined his uncle Einer Knutzen and cousin Ron Knutzen in the mid 70's at their Skagit Valley farming operation, Chris Knutzen & Company, which included a grain elevator and drying facility. This gave him the opportunity to continue his family's farming tradition and raise his sons as farm boys in the valley that he loved so much. After 35 years working the Knutzen farm, Jerry briefly retired, but then went back to work for Wallace Farms' potato operation.

In 1991 the Bensons opened a B&B, in their large restored farmhouse, the Benson Farmstead, which they operated for 20 years. Guests loved listening to Jerry tell stories over homemade desserts in the evenings.

Along with farming and the B&B, Jerry enjoyed being the 'superintendent' of Sharon's Country Kids Preschool, which operated for many years from their home.

Because of his strong desire to help his community, Jerry worked with 'Brother' Bob Ekblad to start Tierra Nueva Ministries in the 90's. Later he was instrumental in shepherding New Earth Recovery in Mount Vernon, which works to help both men and women recover from addictions.

Jerry had wonderful discussions with the philosophy and fellowship group he cofounded called The Stone Soup, twice a week for nearly 20 years in La Conner. This group brought him much joy and good friends.

Another passion he had was for Seattle's Discovery Institute, working to get Intelligent Design taught in schools alongside the theory of evolution. A man of strong faith, Jerry was passionate about liberating Christianity from it's 'cultural captivity'. As he once wrote, "Christianity is not just religious truth but truth about total reality. It is Total Truth!"

Jerry and Sharon enjoyed a rich and full life of 55 years together as they raised their 4 sons, participating in church and various cultural activities in the area as well as traveling around the country and to many other countries of the world.

He was proud of his six delightful grandchildrenSoren, Jerry, Julia, Will, Matt and Jon.
Along with his wife Sharon and six grandchildren, Jerry leaves behind sons Erik (Jenny) of Seattle, Bryan (Ines) of Acme, David of Bow and Jason (Sirena) of Bow as well as foster son Mitch Fraas of Guatemala. He is also survived by his two sisters, Joyce (Oscar) Lagerlund and Janet Navert, one aunt, Loretta Rodvelt, and numerous nieces and nephews along with much extended family.

He will be especially missed by his church family at Bethany Covenant, his best buddy of many years, Jim Drake, as well as his good friend Baldemar Saabedra.

The Benson family are grateful for the kind care provided by the staff at Creekside in Burlington, where Jerry resided these past 11 months as he dealt with the increasing challenges of Parkinson's. They're also thankful for the care of Hospice of the Northwest.

The family will have a private burial at the Saxon Cemetery in May and are hoping to have a memorial service for Jerry at Bethany Covenant Church on July 25, if possible. More details to follow.

If you would like to give a gift in Jerry's memory please consider New Earth Recovery, The Discovery Institute or Bethany Covenant Church.