Gerald “Jerry” Bennett, 92

Gerald “Jerry” Bennett, age 92, passed away in his home under hospice care in Cornville, AZ April 4, 2024. (Picture taken on his 90th birthday with his buddy, Rex.)

Jerry was born at home in the Simeon Community south of Valentine in Cherry County, delivered by his grandmother, Nellie Bennett, a nurse and midwife, September 1, 1931 to Charlie and Alberta Harms Bennett.

He was preceded in death by his parents, brothers and sisters-inlaw, Richard (Betty Doverspike) Bennett and John “Jack” (Kay Crowe, Betty Micheel) Bennett, and sisters Helen “DeeDee” (Lynn) Colburn and Pauline (Don) Cramer, and son Randall “Randy” Bennett.

He is survived by his wife, Lynda Brooks Bennett; sons Charles “Chuck” (Sara Reddy) Bennett, Robert “Bob” (Janie Adamson) Bennett, Ken (Ruth Weihe) Bennett, Richard “Rick” (Cheryl Porath) Bennett; and numerous grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great grandchildren. There will be no funeral. His ashes will be scattered in a place of his choosing.

Jerry always enjoyed reading the Valentine Midland News which we subscribed to for many years. He could not do anything else after receiving it in the mail until he had read it all. The first page he would open would be the one with the obituaries to see if there were any friends. He always said that old people and cows die in the spring. He would also make sure to read the public notices where he might see the estate of someone he had known. I hope, my dear partner in life for 51 years, that I do justice to your obituary.

The next section he would read was the Valentine Police Report to see if any of his sons, grandkids or anyone else he knew was listed. At times there would be Court News. He would always read to me items that he felt would be of interest to me. Several weeks before his death, the Valentine Midland News is the only print he would read; I was never sure if he comprehended since he was so lost in dementia and, at that point, had quit reading to me.

Family, friends, horses, and his art work, were his priorities and passions, in that order. Although I often said that I ran a close second to his love of horses.

Jerry literally grew up on a horse. His mother would sit him on Bobby, a gentle horse who became his babysitter, and put him in the enclosed yard. Jerry would hang on while Bobby enjoyed the tender green grass. Jerry broke his first horse with the help of his older brother, Richard, and his dad when he was 13 years old. As a teen he continued to break horses for ranch use for his family and others in the area.

He married Shirley Ann May in 1952. It was to this union that all five sons were born. After marriage, Jerry helped his father-in-law, Lyle May, break horses. His first job with a steady paycheck was with Wilbur Drybread of Wood Lake, where he would fit the Hereford bulls for sales and shows. Jerry then went to work for Bill O’Kief on his ranch by Wood Lake. He worked for a time at the Valentine Livestock Auction Company where he learned to shoe horses for sale barn use and was allowed to use the facility to shoe horses for others to make extra money.

He eventually ended up on the Frank Carver Ranch at Crookston where one of his tasks was to get the colts broke and ready for the race track. He told Frank he would like to learn how to train race horses and Frank was able to get him a summer job in 1963 as horse groom at the race meet in Ruidoso, NM with Wilbur Stuchel, the leading race trainer of quarter horses in the nation at that time. Jerry left his wife and sons for the summer to learn the profession that was to become his passion. He trained for a few years after that, but gave it up to stay home with his family.

He leased the Derby Bar in Valentine and had it for three years, all the while continuing to break and shoe horses. He and Shirley divorced in 1969 and he took on the responsibility of raising their sons. He eventually worked construction for Paulson Construction Company on the Post Office in Valentine and accepted an offer to continue to work on projects for them in southern Nebraska, so moved to Lexington with sons, Rick and Randy. While there, he was offered the position as race trainer for Delbert Lewis in Red Cloud.

We married on February 13, 1973 and traveled with race horses for three years. We returned to Valentine in 1976 where he worked once again for Valentine Livestock Auction. In 1977, he was again offered a chance to train race horses for Tuck Colombe, and we left Valentine for good in October of 1977. We set off on our adventure to see the country where he could once again do what he loved the most.

All tolled, we traveled to seven states. After three years, we settled in Ruidoso, NM in 1980, where we managed a horse swimming pool and Jerry continued to train race horses. We then moved to Weatherford, TX in the fall of 1985 where he managed a broodmare farm and from there went to Owasso, OK in the spring of 1990 to manage another horse farm.

He retired from the horses in December of 1991 and attended Oklahoma City Community College where he earned an Associate Degree in Art, graduating in 1994 at the age of 62. He then continued to enjoy painting in oils, mostly horses, as well as other animals. He retired from working in June of 2000. In October of 2009, we moved to the Verde River Valley about 100 miles north of Phoenix close to the mountains and the red rocks of Sedona. We have lived in Verde Santa Fe, a gated community, between Cornville and Cottonwood where I will continue to reside.

He also found a love of writing while taking a creative writing class, and joined a writing group where he wrote many stories of his life which I put together in a book to give to his sons and grandchildren. One of the ladies in his writing group wrote this good-bye letter when we were getting ready to leave Oklahoma City: JERRY BENNETT

He drives a pickup truck. No surprise there. It’s a perfect fit with his tailored western shirts and blue jeans. Of course, he wears a mustache, neatly trimmed to go with his neatly trimmed hair style. He could just as easily wear his hair long enough for a pony tail and not look pretentious or out of character. He is a genuine cowboy, “A Man of the West.” How could anyone from Valentine, Nebraska be anything else?

A professional horse shoer, now retired, he has the experience of living and working in varied parts of the U.S. It isn’t surprising that he has met many characters, but his knack for recognizing interesting quirks of persons he meets is razor-sharp.

This cowboy is a natural storyteller possessing a perfect storytelling voice. Quiet, but when he speaks, people listen to what he is saying. He spins a really good yarn, and with a sly chuckle, he admits there may be some embellishment to his memory.

My friend’s talents are many. Not only does he have a flair for storytelling, he has a skill for putting stories on paper, carrying you along with colorful descriptions and good humor. This cowboy’s genius doesn’t stop there. He is an accomplished artist. The hands that lifted the horse’s hooves and placed new shoes, also holds a brush filled with color.

I wasn’t at all surprised to see him sitting before an easel, absorbed in creating a painting. His art is full of color and life. I know he can work a needle and thread, making intricate embroidery stitches. He was generous in helping me with an embroidery project. This is a treasured keepsake. Nothing seems to be out of the realm of creative possibility for this gentle man. I wouldn’t be shocked to see him sitting astride a horse, strumming a guitar and singing, Get Along Little Doggie!

I’m remembering him now because a “goodbye” is in our future. My friend is planning to add to his life’s adventures soon. He is moving to yet another area of the United States, rich with the promise of interesting characters to write about and new scenes to paint.

I’m going to miss Jerry. Billie Loydene Beal Oklahoma City July 9, 2009