Glen Royden Benson

Glen Royden Benson passed away on January 29, 2023. He was 94 years old.
Glen was born on October 13, 1928, the oldest child of Ilda Clark and Mark Royden Benson. He was a lifelong resident of Newton, growing up in the family home built by his grandparents. He joined his father and grandfather working on their farm and was a great help to them in making the farm a success. Some of his responsibilities were tromping hay, feeding animals, milking cows, thinning and topping beets, harnessing the teams, taking cows to pasture, and running errands. He learned to work hard and became very responsible.
Glen attended Newton Elementary from 1st to 8th grade. He was a good student and a natural leader. He was a champion at marbles and had a wooden box filled with them because he won so many games. He was a natural athlete and loved playing baseball and basketball. He had a wonderful sense of humor and had lots of great ideas that made him fun to be around, like constructing a pole vault jump in the pasture and putting together a basketball standard and mounting it on a big tree in the yard. His younger siblings, Mark and Ilda, adored him and wanted to do what he did. He enjoyed fishing and hunting with his friends. He liked listening to the radio and during his teenage years he really liked listening to “the Hit Parade” and singing the popular songs himself. He had a very good voice.
When he was 12 years old, his beloved mother became ill with cancer. She, along with her newborn son John, passed away, leaving the family heartbroken. This was especially hard on Glen, he missed her so much. His dear Aunt Hazel came to live with the family and cared for them and helped with the difficult adjustment to this great loss. Glen was close to his grandparents and spent many cherished times with both the Benson and the Clark families.
Glen graduated from North Cache High School and enrolled in Utah State Agricultural College (now known as Utah State University.) He served a mission to South Africa and was able to travel there by ship, The Queen Mary, a memorable experience for him. A favorite time on his mission was when he and other missionaries were able to tour South Africa as the ‘Mormon’ ball team. Their team was good and newspapers spread the news of their competitions. At the conclusion of his mission, he received permission to travel and was able to spend about a month touring through Africa and Europe, an experience he treasured.
Glen returned to his studies at Utah State, graduating with a degree in Agronomy. He was called into service with the army and assigned to the Central Intelligence Corps. He had been dating Doris Cooley at the time and they were married on March 15, 1954. Glen was sent to Japan where Doris joined him soon after and they spent a year enjoying the lifestyle and culture of Japan. When Glen was discharged, they returned to Newton to live and raise their family.
Glen worked at Thiokol in the chemistry lab for a few years until his father had a tractor accident. He then returned to farming and made that his life’s work. Over the years he saw the progression of farming from plowing with horses and milking cows by hand to riding in a 350 horsepower tractor with air conditioning and radio. With his brother Mark, he expanded the size of the farm and included his family in the work. He was always known for his physical strength from early on farming and throughout his life.
He served on Newton’s Planning and Zoning Committee and was secretary of the Newton Water User’s Association for over 50 years. He and Doris were honored as Newton Citizens of the Year for 2014. Glen served as Bishop of the Newton Ward from 1970- 1975 and assisted during the remodeling of the old church building. He has been noted for his wisdom and many people have sought his advice over the years.
For many years, Glen and Doris were season ticket holders to the Aggie games. They were avid fans of the Utah Jazz and enjoyed watching their games together. Discussing the Jazz with grandpa was always enjoyed by his grandchildren. Camping and hiking with his family were things that he loved. He also enjoyed photography, traveling and learning about the world. He had the ability to fix just about anything that was broken, and that was without the aid of google or you tube. He loved a good joke and it was so fun to hear him laughing. He had an amazing memory and could recall details from events throughout the years. He definitely had a sweet tooth and was observed one morning the day after Thanksgiving topping his waffles with a slice of pie. He had wonderful strong hands, a kind heart, and a sense of integrity and fairness that earned him the respect of all who knew him. He has left a legacy for his posterity of honesty, hard work, and strength of character that will always be cherished.
He is survived by six children, Julie (Kent) Johnson, Richmond; Brad Benson, Newton; Janet (Steve) Morrow, Layton; Craig (Michelle) Benson, Newton; Michael (Cami) Benson, Newton; Jed (Melanie) Benson, Pittsburgh; 24 grandchildren, 16 great grandchildren, and a sister, Ilda Berge, of Newton. He was preceded in death by his parents, his wife Doris, his daughter Jolene (Kelly) Veibell, his brothers Mark (Annette) Benson and John Clark Benson, 2 grandchildren and a great grandson.
A viewing will be held at the Newton church on Friday, February 3 from 6 -8 pm and on Saturday from 10:30 -11:30 am. Funeral services will take place at the Newton church on Saturday, February 4 at 12 pm. Interment will follow at the Newton Cemetery.
Services may be live streamed with the following link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89829857242?pwd=VzR0eXVMYmRvWW1zWFZKT3NWNkRhUT09 or using Meeting ID 898 2985 7242 on zoom.