Grant 70th

GRANT 70th

To honor and celebrate 70 years of marriage, Ben and Carol Grant’s three children hosted a catered dinner and family reunion on Jan. 21, 2017, in a converted country church near Eugene, Ore.

On Jan. 21, 1947, at the College Church in College Place, Wash., Carol Peterson and Ben Grant III were united in marriage.

Through the intervening years, Ben and Carol spent time at Fort Bragg, N.C., where Ben served in the U.S. Army Dental Corp. Returning to Oregon they moved to Bandon, where for almost 24 years Ben had a solo dental practice and they both served their community and church.

In 1972, Ben was invited to teach in the restorative department at the Loma Linda School of Dentistry. Leaving the Oregon coast, they moved to Southern California, where they lived for the next 18 years. Carol worked in an ophthalmology office, and Ben was also able to complete his Masters in Public Health. While living in the area, they joined the John T. Hamilton Chorale and enjoyed presenting concerts both in the United States and England, where they sang in Westminster Abbey.

After retiring in 1990, Ben and Carol moved to Boise, Idaho, where Ben embarked on an encore career of working in a plant nursery and Carol kept busy as a homemaker and grandma. Wanting to be closer to their two daughters, they relocated to Crooked River Ranch, north of Redmond, Ore., in 2000. A highlight of this location was having a spectacular view of the Three Sisters mountains from their home and wide-open spaces. In 2010, they returned to their Oregon roots and moved to Eugene, Ore., where they currently live.

During their time at Loma Linda and post-retirement, they were international travelers visiting 34 countries for dental education, choral performances, short-term mission trips and bird watching. They are still active in their local church.

The Grant family includes Kathryn and Gayle Wilson of Dallas, Ore.; Bradley and Kelly Grant of Merced, Calif.; Suzanne and Bill Dassenko of Eugene, Ore.; 9 grandchildren and 5 great-grandchildren.