Cleta G. Bennett

Cleta Gynell Cawthon Bennett, 94, went to be with her Lord and Savior on April 17, 2021. The family will receive visitors 5 – 7 p.m. Wednesday, April 21, at OakCrest Funeral Home. Graveside service will be 2 p.m. Thursday, April 22, at Oakwood Cemetery by Rev. Erin Conaway. A celebration of her life will be at a later date at Seventh and James Baptist Church.

Mrs. Bennett was born in Waco on June 21, 1926. She was a 1943 graduate of Waco High School and continued her education at Baylor University where she received both her Bachelor and Master’s degree.

After graduation, she began a 34-year career in elementary education where she taught second grade. She had a wonderful influence on nearly 800 young lives in both the La Vega and Waco school districts.

She loved the teaching profession and her students loved her as well. Mrs. Bennett was an avid fan of Baylor football, Baylor men’s basketball, and Lady Bear basketball. She also loved to read, sew, and cross stitch.

She was preceded in death by her mother, Florence Cawthon; brother, Bill Cawthon; her first husband, Warren Ortlip; second husband, John Bennett; and her beloved cousin, Helen Ledbetter.

She is survived by her son, Charles Ortlip III and wife, Galina; grandson, LCpl. William Andrew Ortlip; brother, Jon Cawthon and wife, Alyson; and other extended family members and precious friends who enriched her life.

Memorials may be made to Seventh and James Baptist Church or Meals on Wheels.