Ann Abernathy Benton

Ann Abernathy Benton of Birmingham Alabama was born in Birmingham on January 15, 1933, to Elizabeth Cason and Thomas Dyer Abernathy. Her love of the outdoors began as a child exploring the woods by her home with her brothers Tommy and Billy and on summer trips to Perdido Bay along the Alabama Gulf Coast. She attended Edgewood Elementary, and Ramsey High School, and was part of the inaugural graduating class from Shades Valley High. Attending Auburn University, she graduated with a B.S. in education and later studied art at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

After graduation, Ann taught high school English and married the love of her life, John William (Bill) Benton, Jr. They were soon joined by children John, Keith and Cason. Bill’s medical training took them to Salt Lake City, Fort Novosel (Fort Rucker), Minneapolis, and Boston before returning to Birmingham. With her warm hospitality and insightful observations, Ann was a valuable partner to Bill in his role as the Chair of the UAB Department of Pediatrics. Acting on her lifelong creative spirit, she developed her artistic talent, showing frequently in the Birmingham area. Her work addressed themes of change and renewal, process and ritual, community and collaboration. Her work was recognized with numerous awards and exhibitions in galleries and museums throughout Birmingham and North Florida. She was a founding member of Space One Eleven Arts Center and a juried member of the Alabama Watercolor Society. Her work is represented in numerous private and public collections.

She and Bill traveled widely, finding wonder and beauty in such places as the Maasai Mara in Kenya, the Milford Track in New Zealand and an extended residence in London England. Bill and Ann became active birders and enjoyed watching their feeder for new arrivals and traveling to the southwest and Central America to pursue their avocation. Fostering their lifelong love of the outdoors, they created refuge on a mountain ridge in north Alabama as a place to gather family and friends and to enjoy the wild, diverse beauty of the southern Appalachian Mountains.

Later in life, Ann cultivated her gardening prowess which she saw as an extension of her artistic interest in change and renewal. She moved to a home with an extensive range of native plants and became a Master Gardener during the pandemic. Weeding her garden, pruning, or marveling at the beauty of a new blossom, Ann found joy in the everyday miracles.

Ann had a talent for making deep connections with others as she moved through life. She found great joy in her grandchildren, Helen Ann, Olivia, Eli, and Ada. Dubbed “Et” by her first grandchild, she proudly carried the name and loved that it also stood for “Extra-Terrestrial”. Time spent with her grandchildren was always an adventure from outings to the park, to backyard creek explorations, to art projects, to heart-to-heart talks as young adults, she met them where they were. She also nurtured and appreciated enduring friendships of more than 50 years as well as finding great delight in connecting with new friends well into her 80s.

She is predeceased by her beloved husband of 51 years, John William Benton, Jr., and her stepmother, Louise Vance Abernathy. Ann is survived by her children John William Benton, III, Thomas Keith Benton (Xan), Elizabeth Cason Benton (Stuart Cohen); grandchildren Helen Ann Benton (David Hook), Olivia Benton, Eli Benton Cohen, and Ada Benton Cohen; and by siblings Jill Gardner and Jim Abernathy.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to Girls Inc. of Central Alabama, Space One Eleven, Freshwater Land Trust, or a charity of your choosing.

There will be a Celebration of Ann’s life on Sunday, April 14, 2024 1:30 PM at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens, 2612 Lane Park Road, Birmingham, Alabama 35223, with a reception immediately following.