 1934 - 2020 (85 years) Submit Photo / Document
Has more than 100 ancestors and 5 descendants in this family tree.
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| Name |
Barbara Amussen Benson |
| Birth |
20 Jun 1934 |
Boise, Ada, Idaho, United States  |
| Gender |
Female |
| Initiatory (LDS) |
26 Sep 1955 |
SLAKE |
| FamilySearch ID |
KWCC-C2Q |
| Death |
26 Mar 2020 |
Mesa, Maricopa, Arizona, United States |
| Burial |
20 Jun 2020 |
Whitney Cemetery, Franklin, Idaho, United States |
| Headstones |
 Submit Headstone Photo |
| Person ID |
I17101 |
mytree |
| Last Modified |
25 Feb 2024 |
| Father |
Ezra Taft Benson, b. 4 Aug 1899, Whitney, Franklin, Idaho, United States d. 30 May 1994, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States (Age 94 years) |
| Mother |
Flora Smith Amussen, b. 1 Jul 1901, Logan, Cache, Utah, United States d. 14 Aug 1992, Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States (Age 91 years) |
| Marriage |
10 Sep 1926 |
Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States |
| Family ID |
F329 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
| Family |
Robert Harris Walker, b. 15 Sep 1922, Raymond, Warner, Alberta, Canada d. 10 May 1998, Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada (Age 75 years) |
| Marriage |
29 Sep 1955 |
Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States |
| Children |
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| Family ID |
F8457 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
| Last Modified |
21 Apr 2024 |
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| Event Map |
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 | Birth - 20 Jun 1934 - Boise, Ada, Idaho, United States |
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 | Initiatory (LDS) - 26 Sep 1955 - SLAKE |
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 | Marriage - 29 Sep 1955 - Salt Lake City, Salt Lake, Utah, United States |
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 | Death - 26 Mar 2020 - Mesa, Maricopa, Arizona, United States |
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 | Burial - 20 Jun 2020 - Whitney Cemetery, Franklin, Idaho, United States |
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| Notes |
- Obituary:
It is with deep sadness and amazement that we announce the passing of o u r incredible mother, Barbara Amussen Benson Walker on March 26, 2020 . W e thought and hoped that she would live forever through sheer, cheerf ul f orce of will. Mom passed away peacefully at her daughter Heather an d Dr . Paul R. Sandstrom's home in Mesa, AZ surrounded by her loved one s singi ng her into the heavenly choir at the age of 85. She was joyfull y greete d as she passed through the veil of mortality by her beloved hus band, th e late Dr. Robert H. Walker (Bob), her parents and loved ones.
Barbara will never be forgotten by her posterity: her five "perfect" chi l dren, Flora (Larry) Spackman of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, Heather (Pau l ) Sandstrom of Mesa, Arizona, Laurel (David) Udall of Lindon, Utah, Rob er t (Joni) Walker of Honolulu, Hawaii and Bountiful, Utah, and Holly (Ka rl ) Tilleman of Phoenix, Arizona. She and Bob are blessed with 25 "Aweso m e Blossom" grandchildren: Beth (Stuart) Thompson, Mary Anne (Nelson) Kr oe ker, Sara (Dustin) Johnson, Holly (David) Melchin, Grant (Chelsa) Spac kma n, Erica (Alan) Soelberg, Ryan (Karen) Sandstrom, Alexis (BJ) Gremill ion , Walker (Lauren) Sandstrom, Ashlyn (Brady) Fenn, Barbara Jo (Garrett ) Ha tch, Christine (Rock) Hull, Robert (Brian) Matheny, Rachel (Jon) Hug hes , Janelle (Kyle) Palmer, Louisa (Hayden) Clasby, Derek (Amanda) Walke r, J ustin (Tatum) Walker, McKenna (Austin) Bush, Jacob Walker, Karl B. ( Jessi ca) Tilleman, Daniel (Becca) Tilleman, Mary (Brandon) Caywood, Mich ael (J ulie) Tilleman and Sarah Tilleman. Barbara adored each and every o ne of t heir 52 brilliant great-grandchildren (with four more percolatin g in uter o) and while Barbara would love to have each one named, it wil l take up f ar too much room. She is also survived by her three beloved s isters, Beve rly Parker, Bonnie (Lowell) Madsen, Beth (David) Burton, an d sister-in-la w, May Benson.
She was predeceased by her devoted and brilliant husband, her adored par e nts, her protective and loving older brothers, Reed and Mark Benson, si st er-in-law, Lela Benson, and brother-in-law, James Parker.
Barbara was born June 20, 1934, the eldest daughter of President Ezra Ta f t and Flora Benson, the third of six children.
Barbara was born in Boise, ID when her father was working for the Stat e o f Idaho as an agricultural county agent. When Barbara was four year s old , the Benson family moved to Washington, DC. (for the first time. ) In 194 3, her father was called to be an Apostle in The Church of Jesu s Christ o f Latter-day Saints. This necessitated the family's move to Sa lt Lake Cit y, Utah where Mom resided until her marriage. Mom's childhoo d was spent i n an idyllic family. Growing up with siblings Reed, Mark, B everly, Bonni e and Beth, their home was filled with love, learning, laug hter and lulla bies.
Barbara graduated from East High School in Salt Lake City where she serv e d as President of the East High School Associated Girls Association an d t he Seminary Student body Vice-President. She attended the Universit y of U tah for one year where she served as the freshman class Vice Presi dent. W hen her parents moved back to Washington, DC for her Dad to serv e in US P resident Dwight D. Eisenhower's cabinet as Secretary of Agricul ture, it w as decided (not by Mom!) that she needed to attend BYU. Afte r much "discu ssion", Mom acquiesced and left the U of U for BYU. She end ed up loving h er three years at BYU where she studied Home Economics. Sh e was voted "fr iendliest girl on campus" (WHAT?!!!! Of course!!!) and sh e dazzled as th e BYU Homecoming Queen in 1954. She worked at Deseret Boo k during the sum mer months. She later served on the National BYU Alumn i Board.
Barbara was unforgettable! Her personality was bigger than life; she lit e rally filled every room! She had a joyful, commanding presence and a me ga watt smile adorned with bright red lipstick which she was eager to sha r e on unsuspecting cheeks! She was the most fun, upbeat, optimistic, enc ou raging, generous, positive and grateful person - ever! She could fin d th e good in any situation. Mom's vehicle of choice was a convertible w hic h she drove with panache and style - even in the middle of harsh Cana dia n winters, with kids piled in the back seat covered in blankets! A s a pow erful force of nature, she used her talents for awesome! One gran ddaughte r called her a "human Disneyland!" Her enthusiastic personalit y made he r the consummate hostess, as generous with her hospitality as s he was wit h her talents. She loved Christmas with all her heart and deco rated her h omes to the max. The Walker home was open for any meeting, fi reside, an d party, complete with delicious refreshments. She was friend s with every one she met. She loved the quote: "Blessed are they who hav e the gift o f making friends; the power of going out of one's self and a ppreciating w hatever is noble and loving in another." (Thomas Hughes 182 2-1896) As Eld er Jeffrey R. Holland of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostle s said recently , "Everyone needs a dose of Barbara Walker every day! "
One can not think of Barbara Benson Walker without remembering her dee p l ove of music and her powerful coloratura soprano voice which she mos t gen erously shared right up until the week before she passed away. Sh e starte d singing lessons at the age of 13, and from then on, she trille d her wa y through life! The last two weeks of mortality, she was surroun ded const antly by her family as they sang to her in person and through v ideo call s - and she sang with us!
Barbara's first calling in the church was ward chorister at the age o f 8 , accomplished by standing on a chair, in the Chevy Chase ward in Bet hesd a, Maryland. She took piano and voice lessons for many years. Her si ngin g accomplishments were prodigious, but to name a few of the highligh ts: S he adored quartet singing for years with her dear friends, Carma Fl orence , Hope Swendsen and Cathy Whitehead. She sang the soprano lead i n severa l operas in Calgary, including The Impressario and The Merry Wid ow at th e Jubilee Auditorium, and she soloed personally for two presiden ts of th e United States, President Dwight D. Eisenhower and President Ri chard Nix on and their wives. In Barbara's words, "A highlight of my musi cal life w as to be requested by President Gordon B. Hinckley and Preside nt Thomas S . Monson to sing a solo at the solemn assembly at General Con ference in t he Tabernacle when my dearly beloved father, President Ezr a Taft Benson , was sustained by the entire church, The Church of Jesus C hrist of Latte r-day Saints, as the prophet of the Lord, prophet, seer an d revelator o n April 6, 1986. I sang one of my dear father's favourite , "O Divine Rede emer" by Charles Gounod, accompanied on the Tabernacle o rgan by Robert Cu ndick." With all her musical accomplishments, Mom wrot e in her personal h istory, "My most important role is that of wife and m other and singing lu llabies to my children." We are so grateful for th e nightly lullabies sh e sang to us every night right before our prayers.
Mom and Dad were married in the Salt Lake City temple on 29 September 19 5 5. They were introduced by their parents. Dad was an accomplished surge o n in Calgary. Mom was on tour - and soloing - with the BYU Madrigal Sin ge rs when the choir came to Calgary to perform. Grandpa and Grandma Bens o n flew to Calgary from Washington, DC and Grandma Fannye Walker drov e u p from Raymond, Alberta to facilitate this momentous introduction bac ksta ge. After the concert, their mothers accompanied doctor Dad on a hou se ca ll. As Dad later said, "Our mothers were in the backseat planning t he wed ding and I was in the front seat trying to remember her name!" Mo m move d to Calgary and their happy union lasted 43 years until Bob's dea th in 1 998, although through their temple covenants, we are deeply grate ful the y are sealed together for eternity .
Of all Mother's roles and talents, the one she poured her heart and so u l into was that of being an excellent mother. We children lovingly ref e r to her as our "divine drill sergeant." Mom and Dad had exceptionall y hi gh standards for us in everything we did. And we did a lot. As child ren , besides our school work and church service, we were put in almost e ver y lesson and activity available to children growing up in Calgary: pi ano , organ, swimming, diving, scuba diving, synchronized swimming, tenni s, b adminton, figure skating/hockey, hula dancing, ballet, Scottish danc ing , art lessons, horseback riding, hiking, choir, typing, sewing, pian o an d vocal trios, swim team, volleyball, basketball, rugby and football . W e are grateful for the hours Mom spent driving us everywhere; we ha d fu n honing our skills (or lack thereafter) especially at The Glencoe C lub . Of all the lessons, piano and organ were probably where Mom's tenac ious ness was most focused. In hindsight, we are intensely grateful for t he sk ills we learned. Because of Mom and Dad's intense encouragement an d suppo rt, all of their children received at least one university degree . Extend ed family was also incredibly important to Mom and Dad and thei r home wa s always open to our sweet cousins for however long the need. P recious fa mily relationships were made and solidified as time was spen t at the Raym ond and Calgary Stampede, and at their homes in Midway, Uta h, Mesa, Arizo na, and Waterton Lakes National Park. Dad and Mom felt str ongly that Sund ay dinners were a sacred family bonding time, and the dec ades-long tradit ion of Mom's Alberta roast beef Sunday dinners were alwa ys a highlight o f the week, where tummies were filled and where we all b ecame best friend s.
Mom served continually in the community and in the church. While she sa i d she loved living in Canada, she had a ferocious love of the United St at es of America. The American flag was always flying - even in Canada. S h e recently proclaimed that her true loves were her faith, family, freed om , food, and Fox News! She lead the music in her congregation, served a s w ard music chairman and directed the choir for literally decades. Ever y mu sic calling
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Has more than 100 ancestors and 5 descendants in this family tree.
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