Elizabeth Benson

Mrs. Elizabeth Aline Pearce Benson, age 83, of Algood, Tennessee, passed away Saturday, February 25, 2017, in Nashville, Tennessee. Elizabeth was born July 20, 1933, to Joe and Evangeline Burks Pearce in Magnolia, Arkansas. Elizabeth met her loving husband, Bill Benson, on a blind date in Shreveport, Louisiana, in 1954. They were married on June 2, 1956. She was preceded in death by her parents, Joe and Evangeline Pearce; brothers Joe Pearce and William "Bud" Pearce; and sister Polly Freeman. She is survived by her husband Bill Benson, son and daughter-in-law William and Sharon Benson; daughter Tricia Breast; sister Evangeline Westmoreland; three granddaughters, Abby Benson, Kristen Breast, and Jennifer Breast; as well as many well loved nieces, nephews, great nieces and great nephews. She attended Southern State University in Magnolia, Arkansas, earning an associate degree in business while working to pay for her education. She loved to travel (her favorite word was "go") and especially loved going to the beach where the beauty and the breeze of the ocean renewed her soul, she often said. Her love of travel served her family well as they were required to relocate many times due to her husband's job as a federal Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms agent. "We lived in cities all over the southeast, and she always made the moves without complaint and was always easily able to make new friends wherever we lived," her husband said. Those were lifelong friends, as she kept in touch with them long after moving away. Elizabeth spent all of her life caring for others. She was an unselfish wife, mother, sister, sister-in-law, daughter, aunt and friend. She tirelessly thought of others before herself and in everything she did was guided by her faith in God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. She kept detailed prayer journals, listing the names of those she prayed for and with, and she was known for her kindness and generosity. While she spent most of her life as a homemaker, she was also a talented writer, having had many articles published by a Dalton, Georgia, newspaper when she lived there. She loved life, loved to travel, and dearly loved her granddaughters. She enjoyed laughing and found more pleasure in laughing at herself than at others. She believed in the power in positive words and shared that belief with all those around her. We will miss her, but we also know that the huge vacancy she leaves on this earth will be filled by her laughter in Heaven. Funeral services will be held at Paran Church, 3812 W. Paran Rd., Rickman, Tennessee, at 3 p.m., Tuesday, February 28, 2017. Interment will follow in Paran Cemetery. The family will receive friends at Hooper Huddleston & Horner Funeral Home, located at 59 N. Jefferson Ave., Cookeville, Tennessee, on Monday, February 27, 2017, from 5 p.m. until 8 p.m. The family will also receive friends at Paran Church prior to the funeral from 2 p.m. until 3 p.m. The family has requested that in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions be made to the Paran Cemetery Fund. Contributions may be mailed to Ann Mainord, 1268 Park Drive, Cookeville, TN 38501. Hooper-Huddleston & Horner Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements (931) 526-6111. You may share your thoughts and memories at www.hhhfunerals.com.