Beatrice ‘Bea’ Bennett

Beatrice “Bea” Bennett, 90, of Cloverdale, formerly of Bloomington, passed away on Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023 at her home with her family by her side.

She was born on Aug. 19, 1932 in Wadesboro, N.C., the daughter of Alexander and Lela (Hooks) Caulder.

One of Bea’s greatest achievements was being the only one in her family to graduate from high school in 1952, where she also played basketball for Wadesboro High.

She worked for RCA in Bloomington as a group leader for more than 30 years before retiring.

Bea married Edward Lee Bennett in August of 1984.

She was a member of Soul Harvest Church in Cloverdale, a former member of Emmanuel Baptist Church and she started her faith journey following Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior at Southside Christian Church in Bloomington. She faithfully served in her churches, as a children’s leader in BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) and also in the nursing home ministry.

Bea was an amazing mother and grandmother. She loved her family; they were the most important part of her life. Her favorite things were a clean house, gospel music -- especially the Gaithers -- and bowling. She was an avid sports fan, she loved IU basketball, March Madness, college football and several other sports. Bea developed a great love for wrestling after watching her three sons wrestle in high school. She made long trips to Texas two different years to cheer her oldest son’s wrestling team onto consecutive state championships. She especially enjoyed spending time with her family and friends. She will be greatly missed.

Bea is survived by her children, Steve (Kim) Ellis of Royse City, Texas, Mark (Jian Ping) Ellis of Zionsville, Brent (Rose) Ellis of Linton and Kim (Bob) Rich of Cloverdale; her nine grandchildren, Stacey (Josh) Manning, Lindsay (Jeff) Kirklin, Holly (Kevin) Smith, Azariah Ellis, Angelina Ellis, Kyle Ellis, Patrick (Brianna) Ellis, Elizabeth (Bob) Perry and Emma (Daniel) Hofmann; and her eight great-grandchildren

She was preceded in death by her parents, Alexander and Lela Caulder; her husband, Edward Lee Bennett; and 12 siblings, Woodrow, Henry, Roy, Bill, Catherine, Margaret, Grace, Sarah, Leslie, Gladys, Sonny and two infant siblings.

A funeral service will be held following visitation at noon on Saturday, Jan. 14 at Soul Harvest Church, 14 Crosswinds Dr., Cloverdale, with visitation from 10 a.m.-noon. Pastor Matt Nichols and Pastor Steve Pettit will be officiating. Burial will be held at 11 am Monday, Jan. 16 at Valhalla Memory Gardens in Bloomington.

Memorial contributions may be made to the orphanage in Pakistan at the link below https://app.easytithe.com/App/Giving/mattnicholsministries.

Allen Funeral Home and Crematory have been entrusted with arrangements. Online condolences, photos and memories may be shared with family and friends at www.allencares.com