My City September 2021

“The one thing I don’t want people to forget about Eric is that he was a special person. I feel that he gave his life for his country, though not by choice.” Betty Bennett

Intercollegiate Football Conference championship and finished 10-3. He was one of seven Ferris players who earned all-conference recognition that season. In the spring of 1993, Terry and Betty watched their son graduate from Ferris with a computer information systems degree. On the 10th anniversary of the at tacks, Marty Parshall, one of Bennett ’s Ferris teammates, posted a heartfelt message in the memories section of his obituary on Legacy.com. “Eric Lee Bennett was my best friend at Ferris State and for many years after,” Parshall wrote. “Eric is someone I try my best to live my life by. Eric always had a great time, always had the biggest smile on his face and could make you laugh until you absolutely cried! He was the best friend anyone could have and will never, ever be forgotten! He was in my wedding and was the life of the party, as always!” While pursuing his goals, Bennett still found time for travelling, another passion. He experienced Brazil, Puerto Rico, Rome, London and Paris, among other places. In 2011, Betty, Terry and 16 other family members returned to New York for the dedication of a 9/11 memorial at the World Trade Center site. Betty and several close friends attended the dedication of the museum there in the spring of 2014.

“Terry could not bring himself to go,” she says. Eric’s legacy has also been preserved by Ferris State and Kearsley.The Eric Bennett Memorial Award is presented annually to the Bulldogs’ top offensive linemen while The Eric Bennett Memo rial Scholarship is offered by Kearsley. The school also dedicated a memorial to Bennett a year after his death. Betty said she and Terry plan to mark the 20th anniversary of Eric’s passing with a “very quiet day”which will likely include time with Kim, their son-in-law and two grandchildren who, sadly, will not get to know their uncle in the way others did. Betty last saw her son when he re turned home for a Christmas visit in 2000, but the two shared a meaningful phone conversation the day before he died. “I am very thankful for that,” she says. “When anyone asks what we miss most about Eric, the answer is ‘everything’.” x

which captured the Big Nine Conference championship, earned the program’s first ever playoff berth and finished 8-2. Betty watched every game from the bleachers while Terry treasured his closer view of Eric’s exploits as a member of the yardage chain crew during home games. Their attendance at Eric’s games did not waver when he began suiting up for Ferris, more than two hours away. Some of his road games required an even farther drive. “Football was Eric’s passion and he worked so hard to earn his spot on the Ferris team,” Betty says. “Terry and I were at all of his sporting events. Dur ing his senior-year banquet at Ferris, he said it meant the world to him to know that he could always look up in the stands and know we were there. We still miss going to his games and all the good people we met.” Bennett, whose playing time gradu ally increased as he became stronger and proved himself, started his final two seasons with the Bulldogs. As a senior, four years after helping Kearsley to its first playoff appearance, he did the same for Ferris as the team qualified for the Division 2 postseason, won the Midwest

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