2011 Reunion News

We are back! 

Before I give the rundown of this year's family reunion, 

I would like to thank Greg and Teresa Steelsmith for taking the time to reserve the pavilion for next year. I really appreciate you saving me the trip.

Now, on to the what's what of 2011's get together.

There was a questionnaire passed out, and the chicken was voted to stay, as was the auction

(both of which are personal favorites of mine, so I'm glad you all feel the same way).

The chicken will continue to be paid for with the treasury money, and we will continue meeting 

at the Lebanon Memorial Park.

Also on the questionnaire was the question:

"Would you be willing to serve as an officer?" to which a very small handful of people said "yes."

I (Aaron Benge) was made the President, and James Benge was made the Vice President / Treasurer / Social Organizer / Public Relations Liaison / Event Coordinator / etc.

The terms of office are 2 years for the President and from what I understand, 37 years for all other offices.

Thanks uncle James for having my back. It means a lot to me.

As you can see, the website has been updated, and the counter restarted.

I apologize for not posting more often than I did last year. I will be more diligent in the years to come.

Send me your old photos! Mary Alice gave me Virgil's old presidential Cadillac bag of Benge family history, so in the months to come I will be posting Family Tree info and other interesting things I find in there.
I am still looking for the list of who won each of the titles for Longest Drive, Newest baby, ect.
The list is in the bag or tote somewhere. Wish me luck.

I will leave you with some photos from this year, and a thanks to my Great Uncle George Benge, who answered the "......how you can help" question with

"PRAY." 

...Uncle Jim and I can use all of that that we can get!

(remember, click on any picture to see the full size) 

...maybe next year Andrew will let me get a picture of him.

We've Got Mail! (...and a couple updates)

There's less than two weeks until the family reunion, so if you have any old family photos that you would like posted, now would be the time to do it! I'm looking forward to getting some feedback on the website, and maybe getting some snapshots in the process.

These were sent to me by Rusty McCullough...

Chris and Mary Ellen McCullough, wearing "Baton Twirling" outfits 

crocheted by Grandma Hazel

Mary Ellen (holding "Tiny"), and Rusty McCullough

Hazel Benge

Almost There...

We're getting near that time, ladies and gentlemen. We are just a little under two months away from the 

Benge Family Reunion - 52 days, 14 hours, 30 minutes, and 15 seconds to be exact, as I write this.

At least that's what the new countdown ticker in the side-bar says.

Remember, there is a link to a map and directions underneath the countdown, just in case you have family coming in from out of state.

Looking forward to seeing you all there, and keep the pictures coming!

By the way, if you would like to send me census records, marriage certificates, death certificates, baby announcements, or anything of that nature, just send me a scanned picture (preferably in the ".jpg" format, but it doesn't have to be).

Thanks, and thanks again... keep'em coming!

I just wanted to thank everybody for all of the information we've been getting, 

and encourage you all to scan and send old photos if you have any!

My email is: romans833@yahoo.com

Here soon I will start putting up individual pages with each branch of the family, or something of that nature. 

I would like to put an Excel file showing the family tree if anyone happens to have it on their computer. Several years ago at the reunion, I remember seeing it all laid out on a table... If anybody knows where I could come across a copy, I'll post it online.

Keep those pictures coming!

These photos are more from my time-frame. 

Below: On the left is George Benge, middle is his cousin  Sam, and in the green hat is another Sam, George's brother. The gentleman on the far right is Jason, Sam's (green hat) son.
(Click any image for a much bigger view of the picture)

Taken at the 2006 Family Reunion.

Below; also from 2006 reunion:

From the left, Sally, Nancy, Linda Sullivan-Peffley (deceased sister Eva's daughter), 

George, Mary Alice, Sam.

Below: Sally Benge-Copenhaver's oldest son, Jay Albert Copenhaver.
Jay is Sally's oldest son, and lives in Texas.

Below: Aaron Benge, Rebecca Benge, on Rebecca's lap is Esther Benge, far right is Ethan Chezem, 

bottom left is Noah Benge, and bottom right is Lukas Benge.

Not in photo is our newest edition to the Benge family, due on Sept 26th!

Below: Judy Copenhaver Pollard (Sally Benge Copenhaver's daughter) with her nephew, Jason Copenhaver.  Jason is Jay Copenhaver's son.

Below: Casey Stone; who happened to win the award for "youngest person" at the reunion in 2006.

UPDATED: Tilford, Albert, Sam and... King David?

UPDATE: Several photos have been updated with more accurate information.

Above: Tilford Benge and Susan, along with two of his twenty-plus children.

Below: Tilford, and his brother, Creed. We are unsure if the women are sisters or wives, so if you have any information, please leave it in the comments link below.

UPDATE: I just got this info in an email - " ...pretty sure the lady to the left is Molly L. Benge and the one on the right is Susan Malinda Benge sisters of Tilford. I don't know who they married or if they did. Date of death for both is July 2nd.1939 seems odd?"

Below: Sam Benge (next two photos), Tilford Benge's son, and Albert Benge's full brother:

Below: Albert Benge on a short mule. 

There is a story that goes with this, and is posted at the bottom.

Above: Albert Benge and his half-brothers: Mack,Theo,Woodrow,and Matt on the end. 

Photo thought to be taken at Albert's brother's funeral.

Above: A young Sam Benge with his mother, the widow of old Sam who was Albert benge's full brother.

Tombstone of "King David" Benge. David Benge is an ancestor to most of the Indiana Benge's. 

Legend has it that David Benge had a big part in winning the battle at King's Mountain, Kentucky. 

For more information on King David Benge, click here.

...now, back to Albert and the short mule.

"In many of his pictures of that time period, he [Albert] was sitting on that mule and it was obviously quite a bit shorter than the other animals.  I asked my dad's [Albert's] cousin why he seemed to prefer that little short mule and he explained, "It seems the mule was really fast and would 'lay right down on its side' when going around a corner.  Fastest thing around Laurel, KY at that time."   I asked that same man if my mother, Martha, rode.  He said "Why, sure, she'd have to ride if she was going to go round with Ab."    

Imagine those comments in a deep southern accent!"

------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks for stopping by, everybody. Please, leave comments and photos if you have them!

Special thanks to my Great Aunt, Mary McCullough for this batch of pictures - I have never seen most of these, and it is a blessing to me and my family.  - Aaron Benge

Some Pictures Are Coming!

I spoke with my brother this week, and he is bringing me a disk full of pictures. According to him, there are pictures of Henry and Hazel Benge, Albert and Martha Benge, Grandma and Grandpa Maddox, among others.
Keep checking back, as I will be posting them as soon as I get them.
I also have some census records containing Tillford Benge & family, and am waiting for a scanner to get them online.

...and please, if you have any old Benge family photos on your hard drive, or can scan them, send them to romans833@yahoo.com along with a description of who, where, when, etc.

God Bless,
Aaron

The Hard Drive Has Been Laid To Rest.

Well, it looks like my hard drive will never be revived. I have tried everything.
I am going to have to rely on anyone out there who may have photos of Benge family members from long ago; unless I can get together with my Great Aunt and scan some of hers.


Remember, all comments are welcome and encouraged. If you have info that needs to be posted, please email me at: romans833@yahoo.com.


Thanks again,
Aaron Benge

Still looking for photos...

So far, we're not getting any responses  - we need feedback! 

We recently have suffered a death in the family (my wife's mother), so I haven't been able to add much; I will try to be more diligent in the future, when things get fully back to normal.

On the bright side, we have however had quite a few people from outside of Indiana checking out the site.

Here's a list:

Daniels, West Virginia

Winchester, Kentucky

Batesville, Arkansas

Cincinnati, Ohio

Mason, Ohio

Mountain View, California

...and then a few from  these Indiana cities:

Crawfordsville, Indiana    

Indianapolis, Indiana   

Waynetown, Indiana  

Mace, Indiana  

Thanks for stopping by, and send some pictures if you have them - I'll see to it that they are posted. My hard drive crashed a couple weeks ago, and I lost about 5,000 pictures; including three Benge family reunions and 5 years of family photos. 

...I'll see if I can get my scanner to work.

Hello! Welcome to BengeFamily.com.

Why is there a BengeFamily.com?

At this year's family reunion, I spoke with my Great Aunt, Mary McCullough, about starting a website for the Benge family. The idea behind it was to get the family history and genealogy information online, and possibly provide an outlet where people can post their old (and new) family photos and stories. She told me to give it a whirl, so here goes...

Are you having a baby, or expecting one? This would be a great place to post it. Is there a favorite story about a Grandparent? An interesting fact relating to the history of the Benge name, or possibly a tale of an ancestor who immigrated from a foreign land? Just go to the "post a comment" section after each post and tell your story.

If there are photos that you would like to have posted, send them to romans833@yahoo.com along with names, dates and any other information, and I will see to it that they get posted.

Oh yeah, who am I? My name is Aaron Benge, son of Cecil (Buddy) and Leslie Benge. My Grandparents were Henry and Hazel Benge. I won't bother going any further, because I'll embarrass myself - yet another good reason for a BengeFamily website. I also host a few other sites, including:

www.mangdiddles.com  (www.AaronBenge.com)
www.TheCarpentersShop.info (www.CheckOutTheCarpentersShop.com)
www.theWordisGrace.com

www.TheWordIsGrace.mypodcast.com (study on the book of John); and this one, www.BengeFamily.com (www.BengeFamilyReunion.blogspot.com)

I hope you all join in. Hopefully, in the future, we will be giving updates on the family reunion's budget, and possible ideas for future get-togethers. Let me know what you think; and tell your aunts, uncles. grandparents and cousins. If this turns out to be something that people want, I will add an actual forum sometime. Let me know,Aaron