Frances Bennett

Frances Flora Bennett departed this life on September 9, 2020, at 4:45 am. She was blessed to be given 97 years and 7 months on this earth.

Frances Bennett was born to Isaac and Ruth Gwynn, in Winston Salem North Carolina, on February 19, 1923. She was the oldest of three girls, in a family of three children to this union.

When Frances was three years old, her mother died during the childbirth of her youngest sister. Her father, Isaac, placed the girls in an orphanage with the promise that he would return to reunite the family, which he did during their young adolescent years.

In 1939, at age 16, Frances attended Winston Salem Teachers College, which was part of the University of North Carolina. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education in 1943.

Rufus Bryant Bennett, who drove the college campus school bus, caught the eye of Frances Gwynn, and the rest was history. The two were married on July 9, 1945, and shortly thereafter, they moved to Harlem, New York. There they were blessed with 4 children: Reginald Wayne, Bernadette, Vernard Rae, and Charles Michael. In 1962, after relocating to Teaneck, New Jersey, their 5th child, Consuella Joyce was born.

Frances taught school at Manhattan Elementary School, later known as R.T. Hudson, located in the Bronx where she retired after 42 years of faithful service.

Frances was also a member of Ephesus Seventh Day Adventist Church in Harlem NY, where she was a Sabbath School teacher and worked with the youth in Vacation Bible School and Path Finders.

In 2001, Frances moved to Orlando, Florida, where she became a member of the North Orlando Seventh Day Adventist Church where she faithfully attended, as her health would permit, until her passing.

Frances leaves to cherish her memory, her brother Wilbert Gwynn, her 5 children, Reginald Wayne Bennett (Sylvia), Bernadette Cox (Philip), Vernard Rae Bennett (Carol) Charles Michael Bennett (Erika), Consuella Joyce Figueroa (Freddie); 12 grandchildren, 14 great-grandchildren, along with a host of nieces, nephews, extended relatives and friends, and countless students she taught and mentored over the years.

Funeral services will be held on Friday, September 18th, 1pm at Highland Funeral Home, 3329 E. Semoran Blvd., Apopka FL. A viewing will be held beginning at 11am. Due to restrictions in place from the Coronavirus pandemic, all family, friends, & guests will be required to wear a face mask, or facial covering to attend funeral services. Also, maximum capacity is set for 50 people.