Arthur “Art” Bennett, family man, systems engineer and man of endless intellectual curiosity, passed from this world peacefully on Sept. 11 after a brief illness. He was 89 years old.
Art was born in Brooklyn, NY, where he studied for a year at the School for the Performing Arts in New York. He moved to Baltimore as a teenager, and met his lifelong best friend and partner, Rhoda, in high school. After graduating with a degree in engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, he wed Rhoda in 1957. They built a life together and raised three wonderful children, parting after 66 years of marriage upon Rhoda’s death in 2023.
Art is survived by his children, Cheryl (Bill) Batleman, Jeffrey (Denise) Bennett and Laurie (Steve) Augustino. He was the devoted Pop-Pop to Melissa, Halle, Jacqueline and Jacob, and was blessed to see his first great-granddaughter, Emily, born only a few weeks before his passing.
He and Rhoda were avid cruisers, where Art fueled his soft spot for art auctions. He also loved to sing, performing for years in the Har Shalom choir and organizing a chorus during his brief stay in assisted living. He showed endless interest and pride in his children and grandchildren, and he was blessed to see them grow into adulthood and blossom in their lives and relationships. Above all, Art was a quiet man, just as content reading books, listening to music or watching movies as he was talking trivia, operations research or Broadway shows.
He lived a full life and his memory is a blessing to all who knew him.