Frances Grant Bennett was a fine musician. A pianist, she "horrified" her music teacher when she told him she wanted to be an accompanist and not a performer.
She carried that career preference into what became her life's work - being wife to a U.S. senator and mother to five children. Her youngest son is Sen. Robert F. Bennett, R-Utah.She was a gracious and supportive partner to her husband, Wallace F. Bennett, during his 24 years in Washington D.C. Though she gave up a music career to help him campaign and keep their home running smoothly, she accomplished much in her own right.
Mrs. Bennett, who died Friday at the age of 96, was one of Utah's great ladies. Besides working tirelessly alongside her husband, she served The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on the general board of the Primary, the children's organization of the church.
Mrs. Bennett's Utah roots go deep into pioneer times. She was the youngest child of the late LDS Church President Heber J. Grant and his wife, Emily Wells Grant. She attended early Salt Lake City schools, the Latter-day Saints University and the University of Utah where she received a bachelor's degree in music.
She studied at Radcliffe College and worked on her music with Felix Fox and Carlo Buonamici in Boston before returning to the U. to teach prior to her marriage at the age of 22.
In Washington, Mrs. Bennett was president of the Congressional Club, a group of congressional wives. In 1968 she wrote her autobiography, "Glimpses of a Mormon Family."
Mrs. Bennett was a fine example to Utah women - a talented, accomplished woman and devoted wife and mother.
The Deseret News joins Mrs. Bennett's family and many friends in saluting her achievements and mourning her passing.