Obituary

Carroll (Nelson) Benson, 93, died peacefully in her sleep at home April 16, 2022. She was born March 1, 1929 in Tinley Park Illinois, the daughter of Robert Fred Nelson and Mariana (Aschenbrenner) Nelson. She had a brother Robert Charles Nelson who is 16 years her senior and has a beloved niece, Mary Ann Nelson. Carroll grew up on a farm in New Lennox until she was eleven years old. The stock market crash of 1929 and the subsequent decade long “Great Depression” forced them off the land and into the city.

After graduating high school, she traveled by train to work at A.B. Dick in Chicago. She married a World War II war hero Gordon Benson in 1948 and eventually moved to Rockford, Illinois. She continued to work, stopping in 1958 for son Jeffrey and Jan (Benson) Samuelson in 1961. After a six-year hiatus she began working at a bank in Pecatonica, Illinois. Soon she moved to Rockford where she worked for many years at Mutual of Omaha insurance company and at 67 years old, she retired from working at the Rockford Clinic.

In retirement, Gordon and Carroll were as dedicated to their five granddaughters as they were their two children. Jan married Michael Samuelson. They lived in Nashville, Greenville/Spartanburg, and currently reside in Sumter, South Carolina. They have two daughters Anna who married Jeffrey Tutman, and Kristin who married Richard Atkinson. Jeff married Tabitha (Bachmann) Benson. They have three daughters: Alexandra (Dustin) Koch, Brontë (David) Hertzing, and Anastasia Benson (Theon Parseghian).

Gordon and Carroll had five granddaughters and six great grandsons: Tripp, Watts, Benson, Søren, Otto, and Gus.

Carroll was soft-spoken, slow moving, never in a hurry but always kept moving. She loved to be outside and in her garden. Her eyes would brighten if you brought her a single rose or a basket of flowers. She loved to eat and would enjoy sharing a cup of coffee or a sliver of pie with you.

The Benson house was always open to family, friends, or out of town guests. Her hospitality was over the top and her kitchen table conversations were legendary. Friends and family often reflect on those many Christmas day open houses with once a year assorted treats, cookies, Gordon’s Swedish delicacies, and batch of Swedish Glogg!

Carroll and Gordon are both gone now. We all lose something with the loss of that generation, hard times forgotten and traditions that fade over time. Not that we should cling to the past but let’s continue keeping our parents and grandparents in our hearts. We love them and will remember them often.

Funeral Services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 23, 2022 at Emmanuel Lutheran Church, 920 3rd Ave., Rockford. Visitation will be from 10 to 10:45 a.m. prior to the service. Burial in Scandinavian Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Emmanuel Lutheran Church. To view full obituary, share a memory or condolence, visit olsonfh.com