S. Ruth Benfield

Sarah Ruth (Hipps) Benfield (June 12, 1921 to June 22, 2019), daughter of Jeter and Victoria (Suttles) Hipps, started life's journey in the small town of Canton, North Carolina. She married Marvin Lee Benfield in 1940 and during World War II, with one child, she and Marvin left her original family of 4 siblings and mother and moved to Baltimore, Maryland. During her time in Maryland, she and her husband worked together in the start up and operation of four businesses: an electrical contracting company, an appliance store, a laundromat and a mobile home park. She was instrumental in their success (with her husband) in the planning and helped in implementing a shared vision. In that era where women were rarely part of the business world she was an equal partner in developing these businesses with her husband.


In 1965 they moved to Street, Maryland, to a 100+ acre farm where they raised beef cattle, pigs and had a large vegetable garden. Three of the children finished school in Harford County. Upon retirement, they moved to Spring Hill, Florida. It was in Florida that Ruth found Aripeka Baptist Church. She was an active, loving member of this church family until relocating to Louisville, Kentucky, in 2016 to be near her daughter.


Ruth enjoyed reading, bingo, crossword puzzles and was an avid baseball fan. She switched her loyalties from the Baltimore Orioles to the Tampa Bay Rays when she moved to Florida.


Ruth’s guiding principle was "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." Ruth’s unmistakable quiet, gentle presence was a subtle yet powerful expression of her deep spiritual nature. She was a staunch Christian who knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that when your body dies your soul lives on. Her every day actions were an example of her deep commitment to her Christian faith and an inspiration to her family. She leaves behind a legacy of humility and kindness and integrity. The backbone and heart of the Benfield family, she will be surely missed by all that were touched by her love.

Ruth was the widow of Marvin Lee Benfield and leaves behind her four children: Charles L. Benfield (Patricia), Diana Korssun, Wanda C. Murphy (James) and Vicki B. Gardner (Paul). She was preceded in death by two children: Linda J. Bingham (Danny) and Ronald W. Benfield (Tania). She leaves nine grandchildren: David Benfield, Gregory Benfield, Denise Cooke, Tara Blandford, Kimberly DeCoste, Christopher Gardner, Alexander Benfield, Blake Benfield, and Charles Cashour. Also 12 great-grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews. Ruth was preceded in death by her four siblings: Reeves Hipps, Doris Mann: Earl Hipps, and Betty Brookshire.

In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate expressions of sympathy in Ruth’s memory to be made as donations to the American Diabetes Association, P.O. Box 15829, Arlington, VA 22215 or www.diabetes.org/in memory; the American Cancer Society, www.cancer.org or 1-800-227-2345; or Aripeka Baptist Church, PO Box 38, Aripeka FL 34679.