Loise Irene (Lentz) Benefiel

Loise was born September 2nd, 1921 in Salem, Marion County, Oregon. The daughter of William and Verda Lentz, she enriched the lives of her two brothers, Russell and Wesley.

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She grew up in the railroad town of Grand Ronde, but attended Willamina High School, graduating in 1938. After she attended business school, she was the personal secretary to the Governor of Oregon until she and Ben married. On weekends during the war, she was a coast watcher. 

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Ben enlisted in the U.S. Navy on September 27, 1939. He was stationed at Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked the harbor in December 1941. He was in the first plane to become airborne during the attack. A small, unarmed photography plane in which he located the Japanese fleet and reported their location to the U.S. government. This airplane, his flight jacket, and his log book detailing the events of this attack are now located in the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C. Ben also flew patrol over the notorious Guadal Canal.

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Loise waited patiently for her high school sweetheart, Oscar William Benefiel, Jr., while he served in the Pacific during World War II. They married on May 27th, 1944 in Willamina, Yamhill County, Oregon. They had two daughters, Patricia Anne and Elizabeth Loise.

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The military transferred Ben and his family to various Naval Air Stations throughout the United States and overseas, and Loise found herself making a home for her family in sometimes unsettling circumstances. They finally settled in the San Diego area.

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During the thirty years of active duty, Ben received these honors and awards:

• The Navy Cross (the highest receivable award for bravery and valor)

• Commendation Ribbon (for Military Merit)

• Good Conduct Medal with 3 bronze stars

• American Defense Service Medal

• American Campaign Medal (for service from 1941-1945)

• Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal

• National Defense Service Medal

• United Nations Korean Service Medal

• World War II Victory Medal

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Loise lost the use of both legs, her left arm, and lost the vision in her left eye at the beginning of her battle with MS.  The doctors told her in 1955, (they didn't know much about it)  that she should just go home and wait to die, that she would be lucky to have 2 years. Loise was a fighter and she told the Doctor there was no way she was going to die - she had 2 little girls to raise and she was going to live to see them grow up.

She underwent extensive physical therapy, learned to walk and use her arm again and prayed daily for her sight and to live to see her daughters grown. She did regain her sight and had incredible distance vision!  In her 50's She needed reading glasses. She was 34 years old when she was diagnosed and she lived to know her grandchildren.  She lived 41 years after that very grim diagnosis. The doctors hadn't counted on her very strong faith and determination! 

Following Ben's retirement from the Navy of thirty years, he operated his own office as a real estate broker. He was highly successful in that profession for twenty years, finally retiring in 1990.

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Ben died in his home in Chula Vista, California, on June 1, 1994. He was an extraordinary man, treating everyone with kindness, and was greatly admired and respected by all that knew him. He thoroughly enjoyed being a grandfather and was an excellent role model for his grandchildren.

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Loise always had a twinkle in her eye and a smile on her lips as she faced the many trials life dealt. Minutes before her death, she managed a smile and a wink at her daughter as they talked of the joyous reunion she was about to have with her husband who preceded her in death seventeen months earlier.

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She lived in peace and she died in peace.