Bob Bennett, former U.S. Senator (R-Utah) and member of the Church, died in Arlington, Virginia, on May 4, 2016, at the age of 82 from complications of pancreatic cancer and a stroke. He was born Robert Foster Bennett on Sept. 18, 1933, to Wallace and Frances Grant Bennett in Salt Lake City, Utah.
He grew up in Salt Lake City and graduated from the University of Utah. As a young man he was called to serve as a missionary in the British Isles Mission and labored in Scotland. Upon his return home, he served in the Utah National Guard. A grandson of President Heber J. Grant, he married Joyce McKay, granddaughter of President David O. McKay, in the Logan Utah Temple on Dec. 27, 1962. They had six children and 20 grandchildren.
Sen. Bennett represented Utah for three terms in the U.S. Senate. He was first elected in 1992 and served as a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, the ranking member on the Senate Banking Committee and the chairman on the Joint Economic Committee. His son, Jim Bennett, said in an interview with Deseret News that his father’s “faith was his top priority throughout his life and that didn’t waiver even in the final hours of his life,” especially while he was serving in the Senate.
The First Presidency released the following statement about the death of Brother Bennett: “This is a day marked with both sadness and gratitude as we acknowledge the passing of former United States Senator Bob Bennett and reflect upon his lifetime of faithful service to his family, his Church and his nation. The love and prayers of Church leaders are with his beloved wife, Joyce, and their wonderful family as they remember his remarkable life and mourn his passing.”
Dual funerals were held to honor Brother Bennett, one in Virginia and another in Utah.
A viewing was held Monday, May 9, followed by a funeral in the McLean Virginia Stake Center. In Utah, a viewing was scheduled for Friday evening, May 13, at Larkin Mortuary in Salt Lake City, followed by a funeral Saturday morning in the Federal Heights Ward meetinghouse and internment in the Salt Lake City Cemetery.
