Evelyn M. Bennett of Ithaca, NY and Monterey Beach, NJ died Wednesday, October 28, in Ithaca. Born in New York City on July 28, 1921, Evelyn was the only child of Thomas Gardner and Margaret Kenney Gardner who died of breast cancer on Evelyn’s 13th birthday. Evelyn’s Aunt Mae stepped in to fill the maternal void and continued to provide guidance and support until her own death in 1957.
After graduation from George Washington High School, Evelyn’s first job was at the 1939-40 World’s Fair demonstrating tabulating equipment for IBM. As IBM grew so did Evelyn’s knowledge of the equipment and her managerial skills, leading to her eventual position as supervisor of data processing for TIME Inc. Those were the years and the place immortalized by the show Mad Men and Evelyn loved being a part of them. After two successful battles with breast cancer in the early ‘60s, Evelyn left TIME Inc. to become the personal assistant to Charles Stillman, the retired Exec VP and Treasurer of TIME Inc.
Evelyn was predeceased by her first husband, William F. Danaher, and her husband of 30 years, Frank T. Bennett. Evelyn and Frank exemplified The Greatest Generation – hard working, learn on the job, employer loyal. They moved from Evelyn’s beloved New York City to Yorktown Heights, NY when Frank’s employer, IBM World Trade, established new headquarters in Armonk, NY. They also bought a cottage on Barnegat Bay in Monterey Beach, NJ, which Evelyn decorated with love and surrounded with flowers. Evelyn loved to cook and throw a party of which there were many at the shore. After retirement, she and Frank avidly took up golf, although she never played another game after he died.
Evelyn is survived by her beloved daughter, Gail Carruth (Brad) of Ithaca who she raised as a single mother. Evelyn provided a shining example of unconditional love, self-sacrifice, hard work, moral fortitude, independence and resilience. She knew how to have fun and how to be a friend, of which she had many. Evelyn shared those qualities with her three much-loved granddaughters: Erin Carvelli, Dana Carruth and Catherine Fugelsang. She was GG to her darling great grandchildren, Simone Fugelsang and Ben Hawkes.
Evelyn’s family would like to thank the staff of Cayuga Nursing and Rehabilitation for the care and compassion they provided to her and us over the past year. As a 60 year cancer survivor and volunteer for the American Cancer Society’s Reach To Recovery program, Evelyn would ask that in lieu of flowers, contributions be made in her memory to the American Cancer Society. A funeral Mass to be celebrated by Father Joseph Marcoux will be live streamed from St. Catherine of Siena on Friday, November 6 at 11:00 AM. http://www.tinyurl.com/StCatLivestream
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