Ezra Taft Benson
Born: 4 August 1899
Called to Quorum of the Twelve: 7 October 1943
Became President of the Quorum of the Twelve: 30 December 1973
Sustained as President of the Church: 10 November 1985
Died: 30 May 1994
Called to Quorum of the Twelve: 7 October 1943
Became President of the Quorum of the Twelve: 30 December 1973
Sustained as President of the Church: 10 November 1985
Died: 30 May 1994
Biographical Articles
Relief Society Magazine, September 1943, Ezra Taft Benson Called to the Apostleship
Improvement Era, October 1943, Ezra T. Benson of the Council of the Twelve
Improvement Era, February 1946, Ezra Taft Benson Called to European Mission
Improvement Era, July 1951, Elder Ezra Taft Benson Receives High Scouting Award
Improvement Era, January 1953, Ezra Taft Benson - Agricultural Statesman
Relief Society Magazine, January 1953, Elder Ezra Taft Benson Appointed Secretary of Agriculture
Improvement Era, April 1956, Ezra Taft Benson - A Living Witness for Christ
Ensign, October 1972, Elder Benson Receives Patriotic Honor
Ensign, October 1974, Ezra Taft Benson: A Habit of Integrity
Ensign, December 1985, President Ezra Taft Benson Ordained Thirteenth President of the Church
Ensign, January 1986, President Ezra Taft Benson
Ensign, March 1986, President Benson Well After Short Hospital Stay
Ensign, November 1986, President and Sister Benson Celebrate 60th Wedding Anniversary
Ensign, January 1987, First Year in Office Marked for President Benson
Ensign, January 1987, President Benson Receives Pacemaker
Ensign, October 1987, President Benson Celebrates 88th Birthday
Ensign, January 1988, President Benson Recovering from Mild Heart Attack
Ensign, October 1988, President Benson Celebrates Eighty-Ninth Birthday
Ensign, August 1989, President Ezra Taft Benson: Still Strong at Ninety!
Ensign, October 1990, President Benson Marks 91 Years
Ensign, November 1990, President Benson Progresses After Surgery
Ensign, October 1991, President Benson Celebrates Ninety-two Years
Ensign, April 1992, President Benson Receives Humanitarian Award
Ensign, October 1992, President Benson Turns 93
Ensign, March 1993, President Benson Hospitalized, Released
Ensign, October 1993, President Benson Celebrates 94th Birthday
Ensign, July 1994, President Ezra Taft Benson: A Sure Voice of Faith
Ensign, July 1994, A Prophet of Certitude: Counsel from President Ezra Taft Benson
Ensign, July 1994, Funeral of President Ezra Taft Benson 4 June 1994
Ensign, July 1994, President Ezra Taft Benson--A Giant Among Men
Ensign, June 2010, President Ezra Taft Benson (1899-1994)
Liahona, September 2022, Elder Ezra Taft Benson Visiting Saints in Poland
Improvement Era, October 1943, Ezra T. Benson of the Council of the Twelve
Improvement Era, February 1946, Ezra Taft Benson Called to European Mission
Improvement Era, July 1951, Elder Ezra Taft Benson Receives High Scouting Award
Improvement Era, January 1953, Ezra Taft Benson - Agricultural Statesman
Relief Society Magazine, January 1953, Elder Ezra Taft Benson Appointed Secretary of Agriculture
Improvement Era, April 1956, Ezra Taft Benson - A Living Witness for Christ
Ensign, October 1972, Elder Benson Receives Patriotic Honor
Ensign, October 1974, Ezra Taft Benson: A Habit of Integrity
Ensign, December 1985, President Ezra Taft Benson Ordained Thirteenth President of the Church
Ensign, January 1986, President Ezra Taft Benson
Ensign, March 1986, President Benson Well After Short Hospital Stay
Ensign, November 1986, President and Sister Benson Celebrate 60th Wedding Anniversary
Ensign, January 1987, First Year in Office Marked for President Benson
Ensign, January 1987, President Benson Receives Pacemaker
Ensign, October 1987, President Benson Celebrates 88th Birthday
Ensign, January 1988, President Benson Recovering from Mild Heart Attack
Ensign, October 1988, President Benson Celebrates Eighty-Ninth Birthday
Ensign, August 1989, President Ezra Taft Benson: Still Strong at Ninety!
Ensign, October 1990, President Benson Marks 91 Years
Ensign, November 1990, President Benson Progresses After Surgery
Ensign, October 1991, President Benson Celebrates Ninety-two Years
Ensign, April 1992, President Benson Receives Humanitarian Award
Ensign, October 1992, President Benson Turns 93
Ensign, March 1993, President Benson Hospitalized, Released
Ensign, October 1993, President Benson Celebrates 94th Birthday
Ensign, July 1994, President Ezra Taft Benson: A Sure Voice of Faith
Ensign, July 1994, A Prophet of Certitude: Counsel from President Ezra Taft Benson
Ensign, July 1994, Funeral of President Ezra Taft Benson 4 June 1994
Ensign, July 1994, President Ezra Taft Benson--A Giant Among Men
Ensign, June 2010, President Ezra Taft Benson (1899-1994)
Liahona, September 2022, Elder Ezra Taft Benson Visiting Saints in Poland
"Ezra Taft Benson Called to the Apostleship" Relief Society Magazine. September 1943. pg. 531, 584.
Ezra Taft Benson Called To The Apostleship WITH the appointment, July 27, 1943, of Ezra Taft Benson to be a member of the Council of the Twelve Apostles, the vacancy in the Quorum caused by the death of President Rudger Clawson has been filled. When called to his new position in the Church, Elder Benson was presiding over the Washington Stake, a position he has occupied for the past four years. The new apostle was born in the small farming community of Whitney, Franklin County, Idaho, the son of George T. Benson and Sarah Dunckley. His great-grandfather, whose name he bears, was likewise a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, being ordained at Council Bluffs by President Brigham Young, July 16, 1846, and continuing to serve in the Quorum until the time of his death in 1869. Elder Benson's interests have centered in farming, but he has availed himself of every opportunity which has offered itself to continue his education, and thus better qualify himself to serve the farming interests of our country. He attended Oneida Academy, the University of Idaho, and Brigham Young University. He received his master's degree from Iowa State College, and later completed two years of graduate work at the University of California. After completing his college training, he settled in southern Idaho, engaged in farming and ran livestock and crop farms. While serving as extension economist and marketing specialist at the University of Idaho, he helped organize the Idaho Co-operative Council and became its secretary. His great ability, energy, and enthusiasm soon became nationally recognized, and resulted, in 1939, in his being selected as executive secretary of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, a council composed of agricultural cooperative associations whose membership totals approximately two million farmers and poultry raisers, with headquarters in Washington, D.C. This position necessitated his moving to the nation's capital. Ezra T. Benson has been a consistent and devoted Church member throughout his life. His early activities centered about ward and stake priesthood work, also acting as a scout leader. He spent two years serving as a missionary in England. In 1932, while residing in Boise, he was made superintendent of the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association of Boise Stake. Three years later he was chosen to be first counselor in the stake presidency, and, in 1938, he was made president of the Boise Stake in which capacity he served until he moved to Washington, D.C. with his family. Elder Benson is blessed with a devoted wife who has supported him in all his endeavors. Flora Smith Amussen is the youngest daughter of Utah's pioneer jeweler, Carl Christian Amussen, and Barbara Smith. The Bensons are the parents of five children. Reed A., Mark A., Barbara, Beverly, and Bonnie. President Benson will assume his new duties following the October conference at which time he will be sustained in his new position. |
Elder Ezra T. Benson
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Hoopes, Lydia Clawson. "Ezra T. Benson of the Council of the Twelve" Improvement Era. October 1943. pg. 592-593, 635, 638.
Ezra T. Benson of the Council of the Twelve By Lydia Clawson Hoopes Success in a duo-career is the story of Ezra T. Benson, executive secretary of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, who was recently called to the quorum of the twelve apostles. A top-ranking Washington executive, Ezra T. Benson has served as president of the Washington Stake of the church since 1940. So inseparably is religion entwined with his life and career that all those who know him are cognizant of his identity with the Latter- day Saints as well as his leadership in farm fields. Religion to President Benson is a way of life and he lives it each day of the week. He looks at the world as "God's glorious creation," and living as "the Lord's mission." With complete faith in the Lord, he prayerfully asks for his guidance and does his work with serene confidence in the Lord's forthcoming help. Believing religion the most important phase of his life, he gives it first consideration when making decisions. When he was asked to take his present position as executive head of the Farmer Cooperatives, he told the leaders of the organization that the position held no interest for him if in any way it would interfere with his church activities, his church standards, or his religious way of life. He won their respect immediately, and each year he has been given more and more responsibility in the organization. Known for his integrity and frankness, President Benson never hesitates in the "courage of his convictions." He was one of the first to speak when President Roosevelt asked for opinions on the food problems which faced the nation during a conference at the White House with prominent farm leaders. "If you want my views I'll give them to you, Mr. President," he said, and outlined two steps he felt should be taken. He suggested that some one in authority in Washington should tell local draft boards that their responsibility in providing manpower to produce food for the war effort is equal to that of providing men for the fighting forces. Discussing his second point, President Benson said, "The government should step in and stop the widespread selling of dairy cows, other stock, and farm equipment by farmers who are unable to continue in business at present farm price levels." Representing in Washington the largest farm organization in the country, Ezra T. Benson serves as secretary to over two million farmers through member cooperatives. This huge federation of farmer-owned and farmer-controlled cooperatives which nationally represents, serves, and speaks for its member cooperatives, recently gave to Secretary Benson, "with complete confidence . . . the power to speak and act with full authority for the council." Though his associates give Elder Benson credit for the remarkable growth in the organization since he joined it in 1939, he in turn gives the credit of his success to his blessings as a Latter-day Saint. His attitude has won praise for all those who know him. Following his call to the quorum of the twelve, hundreds of letters poured into his office from high-ranking executives who represent various creeds and faiths. In congratulating him on his high calling in the church, one and all remarked on their admiration for his principles. "It has been a long time since I have seen a man in business express himself in spiritual matters in the fashion you did . . ..'"' wrote O. H. Hoffman, Jr., general manager of the Interstate Milk Producers' Cooperative of Philadelphia. "Your spiritual integrity commands the respect and confidence of all those who know you," said Albert Goss, master of the National Grange. "It is amazing to find in a city like Washington, where men become engrossed with affairs of business and government, an executive so identified with his spiritual convictions," said C. Dana Bennett, of National Agricultural Research and editor of Washington Farm Reporter. Senators, congressional representatives, and outstanding figures in all branches of the government joined the top-ranking men in the farm field in congratulating President Benson on his religious appointment, and all voiced the opinion that no one could fill his place in the National Council. Thinking of himself always as a servant of the Lord, Ezra T. Benson accepts praise with deep humility and gratitude for his blessings. He neither dramatizes himself nor the events of his life but works for the sheer joy found in endeavor. The material things of life are of less importance to him than service to men, and he has declined more remunerative offers because he felt he would not be of as much benefit to so many people. Ushered into the world on a prayer, *** when the attending physician despaired of his life and his father and grandparents knelt to ask the Lord's help for him and his mother, Ezra T. Benson first saw the light of day on August 4, 1899. His parents, George T., Jr., and Sarah Ballif Benson, lived on a farm in Whitney, Idaho, and his grandparents, George T. and Louisa Dunkley Benson, were among the first fifty families who settled in the little community which lies three miles southeast of Preston. The eldest of eleven children, President Benson was named for his great-grandfather, Apostle Ezra T. Benson, who entered Salt Lake valley with the first company of pioneers. Like the four generations of farmers before him, "T," as he was affectionately known by his family, grew strong and healthy working beside his father in the fields. At the age of five he was capable of driving a team of horses and riding them to herd cattle. His love of horses grew with the years, and the greatest pride of his youth was the skill he acquired in grooming a horse. "I would still rather drive a team of horses than the finest car made," he wistfully remarks, thinking of those early years on his father's farm. Though from childhood young "T" 's help with the farm was always necessary, he entered grade school at eight years, "and felt practically educated when I finished at fourteen," he said, and smiled as he remembered his boyhood reactions. When his father answered a call to the mission field, "T" and his brothers had a good portion of the responsibility of the farm and dairy herd. They were difficult years for his mother and her eight children, the youngest arriving shortly after Elder Benson departed, but the deep-rooted fundamentals of cooperation and religious faith created a home life which fives poignantly in the memory of her son. The roots of his religious career and his professional career entwined in the early formative years of his life, and while still in high school "T" determined not only to have a scientific education for farming but to go on a mission. His religious desires predominated and he sought the stake patriarch for a blessing, bending all his endeavors to be worthy of a call. THE earliest recollections in the childhood of the new apostle are of Primary, where he presented solos and recitations. He acquired a desire to be a leader of boys and while still young began teaching in the Sunday School, M.I.A. and Scout troop. "The greatest thrill of those years came to me," said the former scoutmaster, "when my chorus of twenty-four Scouts of the Whitney Ward won first place in a stakewide competition and later sang in the Logan Tabernacle to win first place." Still deeply interested in Scout work, he takes pride in his sons, Reed, who is an Eagle Scout and Mark, a Life Scout. Though the youth of Ezra T. Benson was one of hard work and a struggle for education, it was not without wholesome fun, gaiety, and young laughter. A normal boy, he often galloped his horse over the countryside, intent on Halloween mischief or raced a horse drawn surrey with a neighbor's along country lanes to a nearby village dance. Known as a "tease," his good-natured wit won quick forgiveness for his boyish pranks. With his future well outlined, and undaunted by the necessity of remaining at home to help his father run the farm, young "T" took a correspondence course in farming. Because his father was "in tune" with modern progress, he was encouraged to put into practical use all the "book learning" he could absorb. The much desired call to the mission field came while President Benson was attending the Utah State Agricultural College, and he served in Great Britain from 1921 to 1923. Crystallizing his religious background, it brought into active play his spiritual qualities. His ability in leadership developed also and he was chosen to serve as president of the Newcastle Conference. Following his release he took up the pursuit of his education. But he never lost sight of his church work. He served on the stake Sunday School board, the stake board of the M.I.A. and in the stake superintendency progressively. Though his present-day firm convictions on cooperative movements had not formed into words, while still a youth, Ezra T. Benson entered into his first cooperative enterprise. After much planning and heart-to-heart talks with his father, he and his brother, Orval, purchased the farm. "Cooperating" in both farming and education they alternated quarters at the Brigham Young University in Provo, from which President Benson graduated in 1926. In the Salt Lake Temple, on September 10, 1926, Ezra T. Benson married Flora Smith Amussen, youngest daughter of Carl Christian Amussen, prominent Salt Lake jeweler and business man. A scholarship took them to the Iowa State Agricultural College where President Benson won a Master's Degree in Science and was elected to Gamma Sigma Delta, the honor society of agriculture. Though Ezra T. Benson loved the simple life of a farm and the soul-satisfying activities of church work in his little community, his services were required in larger fields. Asked to serve as county agricultural agent, he moved to Preston, Idaho, in 1928. Still interested in young people, he became identified with 4-H Club work. Under his guidance the enrollment increased from less than a hundred members to over five hundred. In 1930, President Benson became extension economist and marketing specialist of the University of Idaho, College of Agriculture. After a leave of absence from his duties to do more post-graduate work at the University of California, he helped to organize the Idaho Cooperative Council and served as its secretary. His work carried him to all parts of the state and annually to Washington to attend conferences with agricultural and cooperative leaders. Still active in church work, Ezra T. Benson became a member of the Boise Stake M.I.A. board and later superintendent. After serving as first counselor in the Boise stake presidency he became president of the stake and served in that capacity until 1939. When he received the attractive offer of executive secretary of the national council, he would not consider it until the first presidency of the church recommended his acceptance and released him from his position. His faith in the cooperative movement in agriculture is strong. He firmly believes it is economically, socially, and spiritually sound. In discussing it he says, "The earliest irrigation projects of the church were mutual cooperative organizations and many other cooperative enterprises, including the church Welfare program, have been sponsored by the church." Justly proud of his family, President Benson finds great joy in his home, and each week plans one: uninterrupted evening with his wife and the children. Mrs. Benson, youthful in appearance, directs the home management and wins from her husband full credit for her help. With absolute faith, humility, and respect for the priesthood, Mrs. Benson finds sincere gratification in the religious activities of her husband. She sees his extreme joy in his work and encourages him to sacrifice freely of his time and means for the church. It greatly reduces their hours together, but she philosophically says, "Though we see little of him, we have more of his time than any one other person." This cooperation with the church, their father, and the home, Mrs. Benson instils in the children, and family life is run on a cooperative basis without servants. Each of the five children, ranging in age from three years to fifteen, takes part in the household tasks and in family prayers, President Benson at times "puts out" the family wash. His happiest hours are spent with his family, whether around the piano or digging in the victory garden behind the house. The world is bettered by men like Ezra T. Benson, whose name will be presented for the sustaining vote of the church as a member of the council of the twelve apostles at the October conference. Fortunate are the people who have chosen him as a leader. Like the late President Rudger Clawson whose vacancy he now fills in the quorum, President Benson's life has been and will be a guiding light for the Latter-day Saints in all parts of the world. |
THE EZRA T. BENSON FAMILY. Left to right: Beverly, Barbara, Reed A., Flora Amusson Benson, Bonnie, President Benson, and Mark A. Benson
EZRA T. BENSON
From a photograph appearing on the cover of the September, 1943, issue of "Cooperative Digest" "YANKEE SCOTS"
Elder Benson, as missionary to England, 1921-23, poses in a Glasgow photographer's props with companions Frank McGhie (left) and Ralph Gray (right). EZRA T. BENSON AS COUNTY AGRICULTURAL AGENT, 1929, PRESTON, FRANKLIN COUNTY, IDAHO
HARVEST TIME—A FAMILY AFFAIR
Father, mother, brothers, and sisters all turn out to harvest sugar beets. A scene on the George T. Benson farm at Whitney, Idaho, in 1920. |
"Ezra Taft Benson Called to European Mission" Improvement Era. February 1946. pg. 67.
Ezra Taft Benson Called to European Mission Elder Ezra Taft Benson of the Council of the Twelve has been appointed president of the European Mission. The announcement was made by the First Presidency on January 14. In appointing Elder Benson, the First Presidency announced: Developments have made it seem both desirable and wise to release Elders John A. Widtsoe and Thomas E. McKay from their call to the European Mission in order that they might supervise the collection and forwarding of relief materials to Europe and to call Elder Ezra Taft Benson to preside over that mission. In this position Elder Benson will attend to the spiritual affairs of the Saints in Europe as well as direct the work to make available food, clothing, and bedding for the members of the Church in these distressed areas. In excess of thirteen thousand packages have been shipped by the Church welfare program during the past several weeks to members of the Church who can now be reached. Plans are now being effected to send articles in carload quantities. Letters and cablegrams which have been received in the Church offices from the Saints and acting mission presidents of the liberated countries indicate that the welfare packages are being received in good condition. In addition to the packages sent by and through the welfare program, many members of the Church have sent packages to relatives and friends. Word has also been received that these packages are reaching their destinations. Elder Benson expects to leave February 1 by Pan-American Clipper. With him will go Elder Frederick W. Babbel, recently released from the armed services, who served on a mission to Germany, from 1936 to 1939. They will make their headquarters in London. Both Elder Benson and Elder Babbel will leave their families at home. The reorganizing of the various missions in Europe will be Elder Benson's primary task. Five mission presidents have already been appointed for continental Europe: The Netherlands Mission, Cornelius Zappey, who is awaiting visas for his field of labor; the Swiss Mission, Scott Taggart, whose transportation is being arranged; the Swedish Mission, Eben R. T. Blomquist; the Norwegian, A. Richard Peterson, both sailing from New York on January 26; and the French Mission, James L. Barker, whose transportation is being arranged. President Hugh B. Brown heads the British Mission. He assumed his position during the war in conjunction with his duties as coordinator for Latter-day Saint servicemen. The other missions have acting presidents. Full-time missionaries are now being sent to the British Mission. Missionaries have been called for other countries and are awaiting visas. The extent of missionary activities in Europe for a season will depend upon the reports which Elder Benson makes after receiving first-hand knowledge of conditions there. Elder Benson was a missionary in England from 1921 to 1923 and toured the countries of Europe at that time. He has served as the president of two stakes, Boise and Washington, D. C. He has been a member of the Council of the Twelve since October 1943. Elder Benson takes to Europe his experience gained as secretary of the National Council of Farm Cooperatives in Washington, D. C, which, through member organizations, served over two million American farmers. He resigned this position when called to the Council of the Twelve. Returning from his mission, he and his brother, in the spirit of cooperative enterprise, alternated quarters at Brigham Young University with farming, so that both could get a college education. Elder Benson graduated in 1926, and in that year married Flora Smith Amussen. A scholarship took them to the Iowa State Agricultural College, where he received his master of science degree, and was elected to Gamma Sigma Delta, the honor society of agriculture. In 1928 he served as county agricultural agent in Preston, Idaho. In 1930, he became extension economist and marketing specialist at the University of Idaho, College of Agriculture. He did more graduate work at the University of California and helped to organize the Idaho Cooperative Council, serving as its secretary. — H. L., A. Z. |
Ezra Taft Benson
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Green, Forace. "Elder Ezra Taft Benson Receives High Scouting Award." Improvement Era. July 1951. pg. 506-507, 543.
Elder Ezra Taft Benson Receives High Scouting Award By Forace Green of the Y.M.M.I.A. General Board Jamboree Convocation Talk by Elder Ezra Taft Benson Surely Sir Baden-Powell was inspired of the Lord when he founded this great scouting movement. He would be thrilled, as I am now, could he but stand on this platform, look into your faces and know that you are here to practice scouting, to proclaim liberty, and to worship God. More than the wisdom of this world was written into the Scout oath. "On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my Country" These few short words embrace everything we stand for here tonight. Our liberty crusade is for God and Country. It is for free men in free nations to worship as their conscience dictates. It is this faith in scouting and its ideal that has made it an important part of the program for young men in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Scouting constitutes a major part of the program for boys eleven to seventeen in the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association, the auxiliary of the Mormon Church that looks after the cultural and recreational activities of its youth. It was to this organization that the National Council on June 9, 1913 issued its first charter to a religious body. Today eighty-five percent of the Mormon boys of this age are registered as Scouts or Explorers. This compared last year to a national registration of 32.5 percent for Scouts and 2.9 percent for Explorers. One other fact will be of interest to you. We have a large group of Mormon boys at this Jamboree. No other religious group as a higher percentage of its boys participating in this encampment. These young Mormons, perhaps as well as any other Youth group in America today, except possibly our visitors from foreign lands, know the real meaning of religious liberty. Only 106 years ago last Tuesday, right here in the United States, their Prophet and Patriarch were martyred. Many of their grandparents and great- grandparents gave their lives for their faith. Others were persecuted and driven west. In the Rocky Mountains they found a place where they could worship God "according to the dictates of their own conscience." Now from out of the west these youths return to join with you in a prayer to the God of all good Scouts to help us preserve the liberties their forefathers and yours worked for—and fought for— and died for—and secured. When the orange and white ribbon from which hangs the Silver Antelope was placed around the neck of Elder Ezra Taft Benson at Long Beach on April 24, a milestone was reached in one of the most active yet unpublicized careers in scouting. Many men in the Church have been well known for their activities through the years of the scouting program. Elder Benson started as an assistant Scoutmaster in 1918 and has been connected with the program ever since. Because he has spent most of this time outside Utah, he has not gained the reputation as a scouter that has come to such men as President George Albert Smith, President Oscar A. Kirkham, President S. Dilworth Young, and others. Yet when someone was needed to follow in the footsteps of President Smith to carry on the program of scouting both inside and outside the Church, it was Elder Benson who received the job. There is much of the story of Elder Benson in official scouting records. But many of the important items do not show on the books. Some will probably never be written about because they involve behind-the-scenes discussions and actions where only the decisions have been made known. Because he has always had a strong feeling that scouting is an inspired program well adapted to the needs of Latter-day Saint boys, he has always championed its cause. It was for this reason as much as any other that Region 12, comprising the states of Utah, Arizona, Nevada, and California, and the Hawaiian Islands selected Elder Benson to receive the Silver Antelope. It is the highest award that can be bestowed by a region and is topped only by the Silver Buffalo, which is given by the National Council, Boy Scouts of America. Elder Benson started his scouting career as an assistant Scoutmaster in the Whitney Ward of the Franklin Stake in Idaho in 1918. Here he served as an assistant and as Scoutmaster of Troop 37 until 1921, and from 1924 to 1929. As a Scoutmaster Elder Benson ran an outdoor troop; his Scouts always knew that they would get their share and more of hiking, camping and outdoor life. The young Scoutmaster wanted to get close to the boys and near to God in the out-of-doors. So they took to the hills as often as possible. From 1929 until 1934 he worked in the Mutual in the Franklin and Boise stakes, always promoting the scouting program. From 1934 to 1937 he was a member of the Boise Stake presidency and from 1938 to 1939, the stake president. He continued his active support of the boys' program. From Idaho, Elder Benson moved to Washington, D. C, where he became the first president of the new stake organized there. Scouting grew in the new stake under his guiding hand. In July 1943, Elder Benson was chosen a member of the Council of the Twelve. At that time he was made a member at large of the National Council and served in that capacity until he was named on May 22, 1949, to take the place of President Smith on the national executive board. In October of that year he was made a member of the national committee on program, the committee on relationships, and the rural service committee. He is still active on all three committees and has been given many other special assignments. He has been a member of the national nominations committee and of the Old Scouts committee, of the executive committee of Region 12, and of several other region committees. Many times he has been moderator for discussion sessions at both regional and national annual meetings and national committee meetings. These activities have been important and have helped build Elder Benson as a scouter. And it is partly because of this fine record that he wears the Antelope. But the really important phase of his activities has been the "extras": the kind word, the winning smile, the right idea, and the ability to have it accepted. Offering a prayer in a meeting is a commonplace event. All good scouting activities are opened and closed with prayer. So it wasn't out of the ordinary for Elder Benson to be called on to pray at one of the sessions of the annual meeting held in Philadelphia last year just prior to the National Jamboree at Valley Forge. The prayer wasn't out of the ordinary for him. He had given many like it before and would give many after. But there was a ring of sincerity, a feeling of actually calling on our Father in heaven that impressed the editor of Philadelphia's leading newspaper. He had five full-time reporters covering the jamboree. He assigned the man in charge of this staff, his best writer, to cover the activities of Elder Benson at the big event. At the Sunday evening convocation service at the jamboree nearly one hundred thousand people were gathered, about half of them Scouts and scouters in uniform. Four men were to speak, representing the four religious divisions of scouting in America: Catholic, Jewish, Protestant, and Latter-day Saint. A few short years ago there would have been only three. The Latter-day Saints would have been grouped with the Protestants. It was Elder Benson who had played a leading role in convincing those concerned that the Latter-day Saints didn't belong with the Protestants. In doing this he could not have seen that one of the many fine ramifications would be that he would be given a chance to tell about L.D.S. scouting at the jamboree. But it was. And there will be no end of good come to the Church from this important move. Following his address at the jamboree convocation, there were tears in the eyes of many—especially the old-timers who had been close to the founding of the scouting program. Elder Benson had been the first at the great jamboree to pay tribute to Lord Baden-Powell, father of scouting. He did it in a few direct and simple words. But he left no doubt in the minds of the multitude that he thought the program was divinely inspired. And he took advantage of the excellent opportunity to tell briefly what the Church is doing with scouting. For some time Elder Benson felt the need of a professional scouter, hired and paid by the national council, to direct the L.D.S. Relationships Service. He worked persistently with the national officers until their approval for such a position was secured. Then he worked with other Church officials to select and recommend the man for the job. After considering every professional L. D. S. scouter, D. L. Roberts, executive of the Ogden Area Council, was chosen. Scouter Roberts had already been considered for another position on the national staff and his record was well-known. His recommendation was immediately approved. And another big step forward in scouting in the Church was taken. There is much more to tell about Elder Benson and what he has done and is doing both for scouting and for the youth of the Church. But there is no finer example of the spirit he has for the program than that displayed by his family. He is married to Flora Smith Amussen. They have six children, four girls and two Eagle Scout sons. Reed A. and Mark A. are following in the footsteps of their father. They had the advantage of getting into the scouting program as boys, the opportunity that never came to Elder Benson. Sister Benson goes to many scouting functions with her husband, proudly wearing two miniature eagles. But on many of his trips it is necessary for her to stay at home with the family. "The Church and its program, including scouting, means more than anything else to us," she explains. "We like to have Brother Benson home with us, but we know that when he is away he is working for the good of others. So we carry on as a family as best we can and wait for his return." It is because Elder Benson has spent his life "working for the good of others," and especially the youth, that he now wears the Silver Antelope. |
Elder Ezra Taft Benson received the Silver Antelope at the annual meeting of Region 72 held April 24 in Long Beach, Calif., from Kenneth K. Bechtel, vice-president of the National Council, Boy Scouts of America, and former chairman of Region 12.
THE SILVER ANTELOPE
Every L. D. S. Stake in southern California was represented at the annual Region 12 meeting. Here Elder Benson is congratulated on receiving the Silver Antelope by (left) Dr. Pliny H. Powers, Deputy Chief Scout Executive of the Boy Scouts of America, Dr. Ray O. Wyland, director of the National Relationships Service, and nine L. D. S. stake presidents, standing, left to right: E. Garrett Barlow, Inglewood; William Noble Waite, South Los Angeles; Edwin S. Dibble, Glendale; Virgil H. Spongberg, Long Beach; Vern R. Peel, San Bernardino; Howard W. Hunter, Pasadena: John M. Russon, Los Angeles; Dale Brown, representing East Los Angeles; and John C. Dalton, East Long Beach.
CHURCH SCOUTERS WHO HAVE PREVIOUSLY RECEIVED SILVER ANTELOPE AWARD
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Evans, David W. "Ezra Taft Benson - Agricultural Statesman." Improvement Era. January 1953. pg. 27-29, 62.
EZRA TAFT BENSON AGRICULTURAL STATESMAN by David W. Evans The selection of Ezra Taft Benson by President-elect Dwight D. Eisenhower as Secretary of Agriculture in the first Republican cabinet since 1932 came somewhat as a surprise to those persons not familiar with his record of leadership in many important local, regional, and national farm councils extending over a period of a quarter of a century. To those others who were somewhat better informed on the varied activities of the man, the recent cabinet appointment was no surprise at all, and was fully expected by some of the best- informed persons in agricultural circles. The story of Ezra Taft Benson's rise to eminence both in agricultural and church service is, in a way, one story, not two: one in the sense that the qualities of unswerving integrity, sound moral and intellectual judgment, the ability to win and hold the confidence of people of widely divergent views without compromising his own convictions are assets which have put him in places of leadership wherever he is known. Speaking for Elder Benson's nonchurch friends who have known him best as an agricultural leader, William I. Myers, former deputy chairman and director of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, former governor of Farm Credit Administration, and Dean of the College of Agriculture at Cornell University, once said of him: Ezra Taft Benson has the lifelong habit of integrity. With this appraisal, all who know him will agree. In a day when the political market has sometimes held honesty and sincerity at too low a price, here is a man of broad experience, wide friendships, an understanding heart, and a generous measure of native ability, who can also be trusted. This makes it easy to see why President-elect Eisenhower named this man whom he had never before met to head one of the most important departments of the new administration. It must have been this same quality of trustworthiness which years earlier caused Franklin D. Roosevelt to pick out of a roomful of farm leaders, in one of his first wartime conferences with these men, the young executive secretary of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, who had uttered scarcely half a dozen sentences in the entire interview, and ask: "Who was that fine-looking young man? If they will make him their spokesman, I will talk with him anytime." This was neither the first nor the last time that Ezra Taft Benson has so impressed men at their first meeting. Raymond W. Miller, a close friend and admirer of Brother Benson for nearly fifteen years, recounts the circumstances of their first meeting in 1938. Says Miller, a non- Mormon: Benson had been recommended to me for a position of responsibility with an agricultural trade relations firm of which I was the head. With an associate I went to see him in Boise where we found him working lor the University of Idaho, College of Agriculture in a "hole in the basement," but the charm and wisdom and dignity of the man made the visit one of the most exciting I had ever experienced. Not long after, Ezra became executive secretary of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, one of the three largest farm organizations in the United States. During the years since, I have worked with him in many capacities and have always found him to be true to my first evaluation: "an 'agricultural statesman,' " though it remained for another great American, Mr. Victor Emanuel, now president of Avco Corporation with its far-flung multimillion- dollar industrial empire, and one of America's great industrial leaders, to first apply this appropriate title to this man. We next asked Mr. Emanuel to give us his appraisal. Here is what he said: I have known Ezra Taft Benson for many years, and I cannot think of a wiser selection for the post of Secretary of Agriculture. I think this is one of the great appointments that have been made in my lifetime. Ezra Benson combines the practical outlook of farmers and agriculture with spiritual qualities of the highest degree. While I have always been engaged in business and industry, I long ago came to the conclusion that the most important segment of our economy is agriculture because the country cannot be prosperous unless agriculture is prosperous, and, additionally, the farmers are the last great proprietor class, as even tenants most often own their machinery and stock, and therefore in farmers repose the finest traditions of free enterprise that we inherited from our forefathers. I predict that Ezra Taft Benson, who has knowledge of all segments of our economy coupled with a sense of fairness seldom equaled, will be one of the great secretaries of all time. With these non-Mormon appraisals of Ezra Taft Benson in our hands, we were encouraged to carry our survey farther. We sent wires to a dozen other friends of this agricultural statesman, with the following results: J. A. McConnell of Ithaca, New York, executive vice president, Grange League Federation, one of America's largest farmer cooperatives, said: The appointment of Ezra Taft Benson as Secretary of Agriculture brings a statesman and a sound agricultural economist with a lifetime experience in practical farming and professional agriculture to head the department that for many years had been led by politicians with a limited knowledge. In the broad field of agriculture under Benson, the management and determination of farm policies will be determined by farmers and their leaders in the ranks of the great farm organizations, and not by those who in the past have constantly led agriculture farther and farther along the road to complete subservience to government domination. We believe that Benson's position on farm programs and policies will reflect his fundamental understanding of the value of limited government restrictions in prices and in the movement of agricultural products. We think that Benson's high character will make him one of the great, if not the greatest, agricultural secretaries since the establishment of an agricultural department in the executive branch of our government. He will be completely fair, will listen to the proponents of ideas from every section of the country and from every segment of agriculture, and will make his decisions based on an honest and intelligent appraisal of the facts. From D. W. Brooks, president of National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, Washington, D. C, came this appraisal: President-elect Eisenhower's selection of Ezra Taft Benson for the post of Secretary of Agriculture is to be commended by all of agriculture, including farmer cooperatives. Mr. Benson has a sound agricultural background and training. A man of wide vision and thorough understanding of and experience with the problems of farmers, he is willing at all times to face up to the day-to-day developments which confront American agriculture. It has been my privilege and pleasure to know Ezra Benson for many years, and my association with him has completely substantiated my firm confidence in his ability and his courage. I am confident that, in the future, he will continue to exercise the broad foresight, sound judgment and unusual administrative ability which he has so ably demonstrated in the past. I have utmost confidence that he will handle the agricultural program of this country in a manner that will meet the needs of farmers of this nation. From the same organization, and from Ezra Taft Benson's former secretary, Freda B. Couch, who is presently treasurer of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, came this word: Ezra Taft Benson is a genuine individual possessing a pleasing personality and unusual administrative ability. During his period of service as executive secretary of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, 1939-1944, he ably demonstrated his many capabilities in the conduct of the council's affairs within the broad framework of policy established by the membership. The excellent manner in which he conducted affairs of the council is evidenced by the fact that membership in the organization approximately doubled during the years he served as its chief administrative officer. His unselfish devotion to duty and his untiring efforts in behalf of furthering interests of the National Council remain as highlights of this period of service. It is a pleasure, indeed, to recall the five years I spent as Mr. Benson's secretary here at the National Council. His complete sincerity of purpose was an inspiration to all of us who made up the council staff at that time. Wheeler McMillen, publisher of Farm Journal, Philadelphia, one of America's two largest farm publications, wired these greetings: "Cheers rise from the country, from the Farm Journal, and from the McMillens!" Dean Myers of Cornell said: This is a choice that will bring wide approval from leaders of agriculture all over the country. Benson is a man of fine qualifications who commands the respect and admiration of all who know him. Another farm paper publisher, Edward R. Eastman, editor of American Agriculturist, terms Benson's appointment "the best news farmers of America have had in years," adding: Mr. Benson's background of technical training and experience eminently fits him for leadership in agriculture's No. 1 position in America. No department in Washington is more in need of good leadership than agriculture. Ezra Benson is well fitted to do this highly important job. Those of us who know him well know him to be a man of strict integrity, scrupulously honest, and with a personality that has won him thousands of friends from all over America. E. S. Foster, general secretary of the New York State Farm Bureau Federation, states: I think the appointment excellent. Benson has a very good knowledge of agriculture as a whole, and he is not dominated by any particular group. He is in a position to view the whole field objectively. P. O. Wilson, Chicago, general manager, National Live Stock Producers Association, said: The task of supplying the rapidly increasing population of this country with adequate food presents momentous problems to agriculture. The Secretary of Agriculture should be a man who has not only "had experience in the field of agricultural production but also has the ability of leadership and a reputation for sincerity and honesty. President-elect Eisenhower has made a wise choice in Ezra Taft Benson as his Secretary of Agriculture. Ezra has the necessary experience and ability, and all who know him, as we do, will agree that, as to honesty and integrity, he qualifies for this position of trust. Not only agriculture but also the consumers of this country will find in Ezra Taft Benson a man devoted unselfishly to the task of serving all of the people when he takes over the duties as top man in the great department of agriculture under the administration of President Dwight David Eisenhower. Edward A. O'Neal of Florence, Alabama, formerly president of the American Farm Bureau Federation, said: Ezra T. Benson seems to me to be a suitable appointment as Secretary of Agriculture. When executive secretary of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives he did fine and constructive work. We worked closely together when I was president of the American Farm Bureau Federation. I feel he will bring order out of the impractical and wasteful bureaucracy that has developed. He will protect the farmers and, I hope, bring about equality in agriculture. He will be more concerned with the production and distribution of food than with social experimentation. I consider Ezra T. Benson an experienced and sound man. Ben Brumley, formerly president of National Live Stock Producers Association, had this to say when he was first apprised by friends that Ezra Benson's name was being considered for the cabinet position: For goodness sake be for this fellow. He has ability, training, character, understanding, integrity, and humility needed for the job. American farmers will rally to the support of a man like Benson. An experience from the days of World War II has been related by a friend who was a witness of the facts: During these days Donald Nelson's task as director of the War Production Board was to keep the food lines full and at the same time divert much of our facilities for making farm implements and fertilizers into direct war production. Ezra Benson sat in on many decision-making conferences with Nelson and other government leaders, helping to solve these problems. As secretary of the National Council, I know of no man who contributed more to the solving of these intricate problems than Ezra Taft Benson. It can be said without fear of valid contradiction that his quiet, cool head had as much to do with keeping our food lines flowing as that of any other person in America. I never knew Don Nelson to reject Benson's appraisal of a situation at its face value, a rare tribute to his knowledge and integrity. To round out our "outside" appraisal of Ezra Taft Benson as he prepares to undertake his heavy duties, we turn again to Raymond Miller: The experience that Ezra Benson has had in filling his various offices in his Church will stand him in good stead as he moves out into the decision-making field of national and international affairs. The world's problems are basically rural, not urban; the roots of war are in the poverty and frustrations of the tillers of the soil and the fishers of the sea. Ezra Benson's mastery at the conference table will be needed in this field perhaps more than in any other. America cannot feed the world, but it can help the world to feed itself by the employment of the same types of techniques Elder Benson has already used so successfully in Church and farm councils, adjusted to local needs and conditions at home and abroad. In the field of efficient production and distribution of the products of the soil he is a national authority. His philosophy, and the philosophy of his Church, to help people to help themselves, will likely form the basis of his administration of the department of agriculture. The above appraisals of Ezra Taft Benson are chiefly from agricultural leaders or men who have known him through his service to American agriculture. An equally large group of admirers could be found in his Church and Boy Scout activities. We have limited these comments to two or three. From Chief Scout Executive Arthur A. Schuck, Boy Scouts of America, New York City, of which Elder Benson is a member of the executive committee, we received this: Ezra Taft Benson, member of the National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America since 1949, has a record of scouting service which dates back to 1918, when he became scoutmaster in Whitney, Idaho, where he was born. Mr. Benson's personal experience as a boy on a farm and later as county agricultural agent in Preston, Idaho, enabled him to bring to the national committee on rural scouting a background and judgment which contributed materially to the work of this committee in extending scouting to rural youth throughout the entire nation. In connection with his work in organizing the Idaho Cooperative Council of Farmers, serving as Marketing Specialist of the University of Idaho College of Agriculture, as well as Executive Secretary of Farmer Cooperatives, Mr. Benson brought to each of the rural organizations with which he was associated a keen knowledge of the Boy Scout movement and the Boy Scout program and its application by such organizations as these to their own membership. . . . Mr. and Mrs. Benson have a fine family of six children, two of whom are Eagle Scouts. Due in part to the contribution made by his leadership, scouting is today a major youth program of the Mormon Church and extends even into the most remote rural ward. . . . We here are thrilled that a man of his caliber, integrity, and spirituality has been appointed to the important post of Secretary of Agriculture. Dr. Karl Butler, a member of the Church from Arizona, but now living in Ithaca, New York, and farm counselor to Avco Corporation, added this: I have talked with a number of General Eisenhower's advisers who were responsible for recommending Ezra Benson for his recent appointment. To a man, they have told me this: "Mr. Benson has been called into the Eisenhower cabinet mainly for two reasons: He is honest, so can be trusted, and he has the technical knowledge of the problems facing agriculture and the ability to get divergent interests to work together to help solve our agricultural problems." From the nation's capital comes a final word from a friend and intimate Church associate. J. Willard Marriott, now president of the Washington Stake, served as a counselor when Elder Benson was the stake president. Marriott sums up the case for the new Secretary of Agriculture: Since the early days of Reed Smoot's career Washington has probably had more temporary citizens of Utah than any other place on the globe. Students, government employees, and statesmen have come and gone. Few have remained, but in recent years many more of our people have come to stay and make their homes here. Ezra Taft Benson had his stay of five years through the war as head of the National Council of Farmer Cooperatives, and he left to fill one of the high positions in the Church. During his five years in the nation's capital he made his mark. He was a member of the Rotary Club, president of the Washington Stake, and was prominent in agricultural circles as well. He was called in to counsel with the President of the United States. Brother Benson had a great capacity for work. Few could follow his pace. The amount and quality of his work here unquestionably set the background for his recent appointment as Secretary of Agriculture. The family of Ezra Taft Benson consists of his wife Mrs. Flora Smith Amussen Benson, and six children: Reed who is a chaplain in the United States Air Force, and is currently stationed at San Antonio, Texas; Mark, who is doing graduate work at the School of Business at Stanford University, Palo Alto, California; Barbara, vice president of the freshman class at the University of Utah; Beverly, 15; Bonnie, 12; and Beth, 8. Commenting on their anticipated return to Washington, after the news of Brother Benson's appointment was announced, Mrs. Benson said: "I don't care where we live as long as I have with me my husband, my family, and my Church. Oh, we don't mind moving; we've done that before. We've lived many places and moved often." HIGHLIGHTS IN THE CAREER OF ELDER EZRA TAFT BENSON August 4, 1899—Born at Whitney, Idaho, the son of George T. and Sarah Dunkley Benson. August 4, 1907—Baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. 1918—Served as assistant scoutmaster in the Whitney Ward. This was the beginning of his long career in scouting. July 15, 1921-November 2, 1923—Mission to Great Britain. Jan. 26, 1923-November 2, 1923—Served as president of the Newcastle Conference. 1924-1930—Member of Franklin Stake M.I.A. board. 1926—Was graduated from Brigham Young University. September 10, 1926—Married Flora Smith Amussen in the Salt Lake Temple. 1927—Received his master of science degree from Iowa State College, having attended on a scholarship. March 1929—Appointed county agricultural agent for the University of Idaho in Franklin County. October 1930—Appointed in charge of agricultural economics extension work for the University of Idaho. November 1, 1930- September 11, 1932 Member of the Boise Stake M.I.A. board. September 11, 1932-December 2, 1934 Superintendent, M.I.A. Boise Stake. December 2, 1934-November 27, 1938— First counselor in the Boise Stake presidency. November 27, 1938-39—President of Boise Stake. April 15, 1939—Became executive secretary of the National Cooperative Council, an organization of farmers' cooperative marketing and purchasing associations. June 30, 1940—Sustained as the first president of Washington Stake. July 27, 1943—Named a member of the Council of the Twelve. October 7, 1943—Ordained an Apostle by President Heber J. Grant. 1943—Named a member of the national council, Boy Scouts of America. February 1946-December 1946—Reopened the European Missions of the Church. May 22, 1949—Appointed to the National executive board, Boy Scouts of America. 1950—Sunday evening convocation speaker, national Boy Scout Jamboree at Valley Forge. April 24, 1951—Received the Silver Antelope, high scouting award. November 24, 1952—Appointed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower as his secretary of agriculture. |
Ezra Taft Benson, member of the Council of the Twelve, and Secretary of Agriculture designate of the United States.
Ezra Taft Benson and Sister Benson at home in Salt Lake City
Elder Benson being congratulated on receiving the Silver Antelope, high scouting award, by Scout executives and stake officers of the southern California region, in 1951.
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"Elder Ezra Taft Benson Appointed Secretary of Agriculture." Relief Society Magazine. January 1953. pg. 35.
Elder Ezra Taft Benson Appointed Secretary of Agriculture
ELDER Ezra Taft Benson of the Council of the Twelve has been appointed Secretary of Agriculture in the cabinet of President-elect Dwight D. Eisenhower. Elder Benson was born in 1899 of pioneer forebears who were among the first settlers in the farming community of Whitney, two and one-half miles east of Preston, Idaho. The eldest of eleven sons and daughters, he was educated at Oneida Stake Academy, Utah State Agricultural College, Brigham Young University, and Iowa State College. He and his wife. Flora Amussen, whom he married in the Salt Lake Temple in 1926, are the parents of two sons and four daughters. Elder Benson is the first clergyman in a century to be appointed to membership in the cabinet of the United States. A devoted defender of the Constitution of the United States, Elder Benson has expressed his belief in the American system of Government: ''With all its weaknesses, our free enterprise system has accomplished in terms of human welfare that which no other economic or social system has ever approached."
The general board and members of Relief Society throughout the stakes and missions of the Church congratulate Elder Benson on this signal honor which has come to him, and extend best wishes for happiness and success in his new work. May the blessings and guardianship of our Heavenly Father be with him.
Elder Ezra Taft Benson Appointed Secretary of Agriculture
ELDER Ezra Taft Benson of the Council of the Twelve has been appointed Secretary of Agriculture in the cabinet of President-elect Dwight D. Eisenhower. Elder Benson was born in 1899 of pioneer forebears who were among the first settlers in the farming community of Whitney, two and one-half miles east of Preston, Idaho. The eldest of eleven sons and daughters, he was educated at Oneida Stake Academy, Utah State Agricultural College, Brigham Young University, and Iowa State College. He and his wife. Flora Amussen, whom he married in the Salt Lake Temple in 1926, are the parents of two sons and four daughters. Elder Benson is the first clergyman in a century to be appointed to membership in the cabinet of the United States. A devoted defender of the Constitution of the United States, Elder Benson has expressed his belief in the American system of Government: ''With all its weaknesses, our free enterprise system has accomplished in terms of human welfare that which no other economic or social system has ever approached."
The general board and members of Relief Society throughout the stakes and missions of the Church congratulate Elder Benson on this signal honor which has come to him, and extend best wishes for happiness and success in his new work. May the blessings and guardianship of our Heavenly Father be with him.
Pusey, Merlo J. "Ezra Taft Benson - A Living Witness for Christ." Improvement Era. April 1956. pg. 234-238, 266-271, 282-287.
EZRA TAFT BENSON A LIVING WITNESS FOR CHRIST by Merlo J. Pusey[1] ASSOCIATE EDITOR, WASHINGTON POST All America and the free world knows Ezra Taft Benson as Secretary of Agriculture. Latter-day Saints know him more intimately as the fourth ranking member of the Council of the Twelve. Some time before the first meeting of the Eisenhower cabinet on January 12, 1953, in New York City, the President-elect chatted with Elder Benson and spoke of his interest in the spiritual welfare of the country. This gave the Secretary-designate an opportunity to express his views of the great need for the guidance of God in their deliberations and to suggest that it would be appropriate to open their meeting with prayer. The President, a man of deep spirituality, evidently concurred. Nothing more was said on the subject until later at the first cabinet meeting. All the introductions had been made and everyone had found his place around the luncheon table. Then the President-elect paused a moment, his beaming smile giving way to seriousness. Because of the great need of the incoming administration for divine inspiration, he said, he was asking the Secretary of Agriculture to open this first meeting of the new cabinet with prayer. Elder Benson was taken completely by surprise. Yet in a general sense he was well prepared for this unusual assignment; spontaneous prayer was a deeply ingrained habit. With mingled humility and confidence in the Tightness of his course, he prayed fervently, thanking God for freedom, for our inspired Constitution, for the principles guiding our way of life, and for the bounty of the land. Then he uttered an earnest petition for divine guidance, for the spirit of discernment, for unity and dedication to the welfare of the people and to the holy purposes of God. It was an impressive and inspirational prayer. Eight days later the President himself uttered a simple and direct prayer as a preliminary to his inaugural address. At the second meeting in Washington the practice of opening each cabinet meeting with prayer was agreed upon as routine procedure. Occasionally it is vocal, as at the first meeting in New York, but usually it is silent. The members of the cabinet bow their heads, and each silently addresses Deity in his own way. Secretary Benson also opens his own staff meetings at the Department of Agriculture with prayer. Some of his associates at the department were rather shocked to be called upon to pray, but they became accustomed to it. They have come to appreciate the Secretary's deep sincerity and to respect his conviction that no important decision should be made without an appeal to God for his assistance. Elder Benson inherited a rich legacy of faith. The Ezra Taft Benson for whom he was named, his great grandfather, was the first apostle selected by Brigham Young after the death of the Prophet. That devoted churchman— who preached with power, endured cruel persecution, served as a member of the Nauvoo Legion—accompanied President Young and the first company of Mormon pioneers on the perilous journey across the plains to Salt Lake Valley in 1847. George T. Benson, the Secretary's grandfather, for twenty -three years bishop of the Whitney Ward, [Idaho] was born in a covered wagon in Iowa during the journey. Later he and his wife Louisa Ballif Benson, parents of thirteen children, became pioneers in the settlement of a portion of Cache Valley in southern Idaho. There, in the little community of Whitney, George T. Benson, Jr., and Sarah Dunkley Benson, one of a family of thirteen, were living in a two-room house on a forty-acre livestock, sugar-beet, grain, and potato farm when their eldest son, Ezra Taft, was born on August 4, 1899. The attending doctor despaired of his life and that of his mother. In administering to them, his father and the attending doctor invoked God's healing power upon the infant. As the eldest great-great-grandson, the name of the distinguished pioneer apostle was conferred on him. Young Ezra grew up with a strong conviction that this exercise of faith had saved his life. From his earliest childhood he was taught to pray and to rely upon prayer to overcome every difficulty. His father, who served in the bishopric and the stake presidency, used to say to him: "Remember that whatever you do or wherever you are, you are never alone. Our Heavenly Father is always near. You can reach out and receive his aid through prayer." Gratefully Elder Benson acknowledges the priceless blessing of being reared in a home frequently referred to as "an ideal Mormon home." "There was ever present a spirit of love, unselfish co-operation and dedication to the principles of the gospel, with full activity in the Church," says Elder Benson. "In fact, I cannot remember ever hearing a cross word between the faithful father and queenly mother in that haven of peace," he added. Ezra learned early in youth the virtue of hard work. At the age of four he could drive a team, and he was soon herding cattle, thinning beets, milking cows, and doing general farm work. The Benson family grew (Ezra being the eldest of eleven children) and so did the family home and the farm acreage. In addition to cultivating beets and potatoes, the Bensons kept fifteen Holstein cows, about two hundred fifty chickens, and a few hogs. On their new acreage in the foothills they raised wheat. Ezra, or "T" as the family called him, met his first big test at the age of fourteen: His father was to go on a mission; to make the mission possible they sold half the farm and shared their home with the family that operated part of the remaining acres. The pasture-dairy section of the farm was retained for Ezra and his brothers to manage. Stark economic necessity thus drove them to extraordinary efforts. Ezra's noble mother carried courageously the responsibility of eight children, the last of which was born four months after her husband had left for his mission. Later her eldest son said, recalling those two years, "Never did I hear a murmur from her lips." It was a period of real hardships for the Bensons, but toil and pinching to make ends meet did not seem like hardships when they contributed to the cause to which all members of the family gave their primary devotion. At the age of sixteen Ezra proved his unusual capacity for work by thinning an entire acre of beets in a day—from sun-up to sun-down. The surprised neighbor for whom he did the work gave him two five dollar gold pieces and two silver dollars. Never before or since has he felt as wealthy as he did that night. Nor did his premature responsibilities blight his youthful zest. Within the family and the school "T" was a "tease" and a perpetrator of practical jokes. Somehow, despite the demands of school and the farm, he also found time to trap muskrats to help meet expenses, to round up cattle in the nearby mountains, and to indulge his love of basketball, baseball, and other sports. Starting school at eight, he early decided that he wanted to study agriculture. He attended the Oneida Stake Academy, traveling each day from the farm to Preston, Idaho, by horseback or by buggy or sleigh. In the winter of 1918 he began spending intermittent quarters —whenever farm work would permit—at the Utah State Agricultural College in Logan, Utah. At Logan he found something more than new ways of cultivating the soil and increasing milk production. In the fall of 1920 he visited the college preliminary to registration. As he stood on the curb of Main Street in Logan with his cousin, Serge Ballif, an attractive girl drove by and waved at Serge. "Who is that girl?" Ezra asked. "Why, that's Flora Amussen," Serge replied. "If I come down here this winter," Ezra asserted, with a tone of determination in his voice, "I'm going to 'step' her." "The dickens you will," his cousin shot back. "She's too popular for you.” "That makes it all the more interesting," the confident young farmer replied. A few weeks later he was surprised and happy to see the same girl in his own Whitney Ward Sunday School. She was spending the week end with a friend. This time he had a chance to meet her when his uncle asked him to take the girls for a drive. Ezra came back deeply impressed by her "sweet personality, high standards, deep spirituality, good common sense, and deep appreciation for the slightest favor." His resolution to get better acquainted with her was firmed into a major purpose. Flora who had never heard of this farm boy, little realized he was to be her future husband. While he was attending the USAC that winter and living at his "Grandma" Benson's home, he found the courage to ask Flora for a "first date." His audacity was borne in upon him as he approached the large three-story Amussen home that night in his "blue serge suit, shiny in the back," and reflected that he was calling on a girl who owned a car, who lived in a home of culture and refinement, and was said to be "the most popular girl in town." Flora was most gracious, and her mother quickly put the young farmer at ease by talking about farming and his family. As the young couple left, Flora kissed her mother tenderly, and Ezra knew in his heart that he had made "a great find." Flora was the youngest daughter of Carl C. Amussen, a cultured, well-educated native of Denmark who had made a fortune as a jeweler and watchmaker in connection with the 1848 gold rush in Australia. He had joined the Church in Liverpool and migrated to Utah, crossing the plains in 1865. He established a jewelry business in Salt Lake City, erected a business building at 60 South Main Street—a structure still in use. Later he built business houses in Logan, provided fine homes for his three families, traveled twice around the world, filled four missions for the Church, and assembled one of the best libraries and collection of oil paintings in Utah. Flora's mother, Barbara Smith Amussen, was forty -two years younger than her husband. Born in Tooele, Utah, of Scottish pioneer parents, she is described by those who knew her as a "noble and angelic soul"— a woman without guile. Her husband died at the age of seventy-seven when their youngest daughter Flora was only a year old. Sister Amussen reared her family of six as a widow with tenderness and unusual understanding. The intimate and loving relationship between herself and Flora explains in considerable measure the ideal home life that is found today in the Benson home. Ezra found the competition keen, for, in addition to her background and her winsome personality, Flora Amussen was a tennis star on the campus, president of the Girls' Athletic Club, a prize-winning student actress, vice president of the USAC student body, chairman of the Junior Prom committee, and a leader in many other activities. But Ezra pressed his courtship with tact and determination. Doubtless he was aided by the great confidence Flora's mother came to place in him. In 1921 this "inspirational and soul satisfying courtship," as he once described it, was interrupted by a mission to Great Britain. For two years Ezra preached the gospel ardently. In Newcastle, where he became president of the conference, he dressed in the plain clothes of a workman while preaching to the unemployed on the streets. The affection he won is indicated by recent reports from Newcastle that people still refer to him as "Our Benson." Not all of those who heard him were favorably impressed, however. On one occasion he and his missionary companion barely escaped a mobbing. Throughout his two and a half years in England he corresponded with Flora Amussen. On his return he was eager to get married and settle down on the farm where he intended to spend his life. Flora consented on both points, but her idea of the timing of these events was rather different from his. She had come to see in Ezra Taft Benson all the qualities she admired. She was attracted by his clean and honest living, his wholesome manner, his sincere faith, his hard work, his desire to learn and to help his fellow men, and his determination to move ahead in the world. She was convinced that he would make an ideal husband, but he had not yet finished his education. With remarkable resolution for a young woman of twenty-two, she talked quietly with her bishop, expressing her desire to go on a mission, hoping that in the meantime "T" would finish college. She believed that his college degree and her mission would better prepare both of them temporally and spiritually, for future responsibilities. She realized that he might decide not to wait two years—that he might change his mind—but she went ahead anyway. If their love would not stand this test, perhaps they were not meant for each other. She spent twenty months doing missionary work in Hawaii. Again letters were exchanged, and Flora felt that her prayers had been answered when he wrote her that he had obtained his degree with honors from Brigham Young University and accepted a scholarship to Iowa State College. Incidentally, he had also been designated the "most popular man" at BYU. In reply to one of his letters, Flora said she would be happy to go with him to Ames and live on the seventy dollars a month his scholarship provided. They were married in the Salt Lake Temple on September 10, 1926, and left the same day for Ames, carrying all their possessions in a secondhand Ford pickup truck and camping out at night under a leaky tent. On her marriage, Flora gave most of her share of the inheritance from her father, to her mother, who had suffered financial reverses, and to a missionary fund to be used later for her sons. At Ames the young couple supplemented their meager income with vegetables from the experimental farm. At the end of the school year, Ezra had received a master's degree and had been elected to Gamma Sigma Delta, the honorary society of agriculture, and Flora had taken special classes in home economics. In the spring of 1927, a period of agricultural depression despite the booming prosperity of the nation as a whole, they moved to the farm in southern Idaho. Ezra and his brother Orval had purchased the family farm in 1923 while values were still inflated, and they had a struggle to keep up the payments. Nevertheless, they loved farming as a way of life. Flora adjusted quickly to her new environment. Her chief interest in life was to support her husband in his work and his Church activities, to make a happy home, and to rear a family of fine children. She learned to manage the household on a meager allowance, to cook for the threshers, and to meet every problem or emergency with calm assurance that everything would work out for the best. Ezra and his brother were still in partnership when Orval was called on a mission in the fall of 1927—the farm income financing the mission. After Ezra had been on the farm only a year and a half, however, his neighbors found him so useful that the county commissioners literally drafted him to serve as County Agricultural Agent. It was agreed he could continue to operate the farm, but this Ezra thought unfair, and the new job was so demanding that he moved to the county seat and gave his whole time to it. Later when the farm partnership was dissolved, he found himself in debt because of depressed farm prices and the cost of his education. This took years for the young couple to pay. As county agent, young Benson helped his neighbors to improve their stock, to rotate their crops, to kill off the crop-destroying rodents, and to organize co-operatives. Under the stimulus he supplied, the 4-H clubs of the area multiplied their membership more than fivefold. So successful were his efforts that in two years he was summoned to Boise as extension economist and marketing specialist at the University of Idaho's College of Agriculture. Out of this work came a conviction that farmers could save money, improve their marketing and greatly advance their welfare through cooperatives. This belief became the central theme of Ezra Taft Benson's thinking about agriculture. At Boise he helped to organize the Idaho Co-operative Council and became its secretary in 1933. One of the campaigns for which he was largely responsible made the Idaho potato famous throughout the land. In the five years that he held this post, the Idaho Co-operative Council became one of the most alert and progressive organizations of its kind in the country. Not satisfied with his own qualifications, Ezra Benson took time out for graduate work at the University of California in Berkeley. Even in his busiest years, he worked in both ward and stake Sunday School organizations, and in the Young Men's Mutual Improvement Association. Warming young people to the Church was his hobby. As scoutmaster in the Whitney Ward, he built up a troop that is still remembered for its exploits and the influence it exerted on the lives of its members. A chorus composed of twenty-four Scouts and directed by a future apostle won a stake-wide contest and went on to compete successfully with six Cache Valley choruses in the Logan Tabernacle. To this day Elder Benson has continued his interest in scouting and is a member of the National Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America. In 1955 he was awarded the honor most appreciated by scouters the world over —the Silver Buffalo. It was a great thrill to him when his sons Reed and Mark became Eagle Scouts. In 1932 Elder Benson became superintendent of the YMMIA in Boise Stake, three years later first counselor in the stake presidency, and in 1938, while still in his thirties, president of the Boise Stake. Bringing to the stake the same energy, devotion, and organizing ability that he gave to the co-operative council, he won the attention of the Church Authorities in Salt Lake City. At the age of thirty -nine he was asked to go to Washington for consultation with the heads of the National Council of Farmer Co-operatives, which speaks for 2,500,000 farmers and 5,000 co-ops throughout the nation. After looking him over and questioning him, the board of trustees offered him the position of executive secretary of that organization, a direct tribute to the work he had done in Idaho. Though he was thrilled by this unsolicited bid for his services, he did not wish to accept it. As he understood it, the job would entail lobbying by the use of cocktail parties, which would not be compatible with his religion. "Mr. Benson," Judge John D. Miller, head of the group, replied, "that is why we selected you. We know what your standards are." With full assurance from the board that he would not be expected to seek an understanding of agricultural problems over cocktail glasses, he was delighted to accept the position, but only after consultation with the First Presidency and his wife. Washington broadened his view of agriculture to national proportions. Soon he was speaking as authoritatively and convincingly of national farm problems as he had previously spoken of Idaho and intermountain farm problems. In five "happy, profitable, never-to-be-forgotten years," he won the confidence not only of the great farm organizations but also of legislators, government officials, and business leaders. In 1943 a large regional co-op offered to multiply his salary by more than three—a figure that shocked him. Elder Benson waited until he could discuss it with the -Brethren in Salt Lake City. For three years he had been the first president of the Washington, D.C., Stake, and the new job would take him away from the capital. On his trip to the West, he visited Charles C. Teague, President of the National Council of Farmer Co-operatives, at his home in Santa Paula, California. As they left, Mr. Teague said, "We know you've had opportunities to go elsewhere, but we want you to stay with the NCFC. All you need to do is to name your figure." Elder Benson replied that he did not wish to leave the work he was doing. "I love the co-operative movement," he said. "I believe in it. It squares with my philosophy of life, my religious philosophy." He promised to let Mr. Teague know when he reached a decision. In Salt Lake City, he hoped to get the advice of President David O. McKay of the First Presidency. When he telephoned to President McKay on July 26, 1943, the latter said that President Heber J. Grant wished to see him. Sister Grant welcomed them and said that the President was waiting in the bedroom. Still weak from his illness, he was lying down. As Elder Benson approached the bed, President Grant took his right hand in both of his and seemed to look into the depths of his soul. "Brother Benson," he said, "with all my heart I congratulate you and pray God's blessings to attend you. You have been chosen as the youngest apostle of the Church." Taken completely by surprise, Ezra Taft Benson felt as if the earth beneath him were sinking. Many times he had felt a longing to spend his full time in Church work, but he had not dreamed of high office in the Church although it was learned later that his mother-in-law, who passed on before his calling, had premonitions of his appointment. He put aside completely thoughts of the new job that he had come to discuss with the Brethren. The Bensons were for the first time in their married lives out of debt, having just completed the payments on their home. This represented all their material accumulations since their marriage, with no opportunity for any savings to be put aside. The children all agreed they must work to put themselves through college. This was no new experience for the Bensons and their family. They would continue working hard a§ they had always done. Elder Benson was sustained in his new position by the priesthood leadership and membership of the Church at the October conference in 1943.[2] He was ordained and set apart by President Heber J. Grant on October 7th. His first address as an apostle gives us an indication of the spirit in which he took up his ministry. He began by saying: My beloved brethren of the priesthood, my heart is filled to overflowing with gratitude as I look into your faces this day — a day which I shall never forget. I am grateful beyond any power of expression for the blessings which have come to me and particularly for the great honor that has come to one of the weakest of your number. I love this work. All my life I have had a testimony of it and a love for the leaders of the Church and for the priesthood of God. I know that it is true and no sacrifice that you and I can make is too great for this wonderful work in which we are engaged. With the farewell blessings of Mr. Teague and the Executive Committee of the National Council of Farmer Co-operatives, Elder Benson severed his connection with that organization the following May and was presented with a framed scroll which referred to him as "a man without peer in his field of activities." A few months after the end of World War II, Elder Benson was chosen to restore contacts with the Saints in Europe as president of the European Mission. His task was to organize the shipments of clothing, food, and bedding for the Saints in Europe, to reorganize the missions, to prepare the way for new missionaries from the United States, and to restore the bridge of spirituality between the Old World and the New. Elder Benson arrived in London on February 4, 1946, only three weeks after his appointment had been announced. On the following Sunday he held a conference of the joint branches of the London District. On Monday he flew to Paris to purchase vehicles for the distribution of food and supplies. During the next two weeks Elder Benson also visited the Netherlands, Danish, Swedish, and Norwegian missions, often changing trains several times in the course of a day and taking to Army trucks to get across rivers where railway bridges had been bombed out. Elder Benson conferred with dozens of Church and civil leaders, arranged for the distribution of food, and surveyed the spiritual conditions of the missions and branches. In March he began another tour, this time holding many conferences. Before entering Germany, Elder Benson had wondered what kind of reception he would have. The answer to his anxiety came at Karlsruhe where a group of Saints prolonged their meeting in a partly bombed out building for two hours waiting for him to arrive. When the happy reunion finally took place, almost the entire audience was in tears. As this was the first time in six or seven years they had had an opportunity to greet a representative from Church headquarters, they insisted that the meeting be extended and that, at the conclusion, everyone should have an opportunity to shake the apostle's hand before leaving. Permission to enter Germany had been most difficult to obtain. The occupying military authorities had laid down a rule against the admittance of anyone not connected with the government. Elder Benson sought an appointment with the general in charge and was flatly refused. The plight of the people was so desperate that he refused to take no for an answer. He turned to the Lord for help through fasting and prayer. "Before long," he tells us, "a spirit of assurance replaced my troubled anxiety. 'The Lord,' I thought, 'is sharing his strength with me.' An impelling force urged me to seek another audience with the general. "I approached the general's adjutant with a new surge of confidence. Minutes later I was granted an audience. The general heard me through and graciously acceded to our request." Divine assistance was also necessary to get him into Poland. In Finland, Elder Benson selected an appropriate spot and dedicated that land to the preaching of the gospel.[3] Meanwhile in Salt Lake Sister Benson continued, as usual, to take the major responsibility in rearing the family. Although she missed him greatly, her plucky spirit and desire to have him share his time in service to others was a real inspiration to many who realized that already his church and business travels had taken him away from home about half of their married life. When he returned home at the end of ten months, he had covered 61,236 miles, had borne his testimony in thirteen European countries, spread comfort and encouragement among thousands of grief-stricken, impoverished, and war-sickened people, distributed fifty-one carloads of food and other supplies, reorganized branches, purchased properties, and prepared the way for a great new missionary effort among peoples touched by the tragedy of war. Back home again, Elder Benson plunged into a seemingly endless round of activities. On November 16, 1952, he accompanied President Stephen L Richards of the First Presidency to Washington for the dedication of the Chevy Chase Ward chapel. He visited a number of government officials and farm leaders. In 1948 he had been approached before the presidential election, in regard to a position in the cabinet that Governor Thomas E. Dewey hoped to organize. In 1952 Elder Benson had no thought of being singled out to head the Department of Agriculture. On the night of November 20, however, Elder Benson received a telephone call that a great "ground-swell" of support was developing for his appointment to be Secretary of Agriculture, and he truthfully replied that he had heard nothing about it. "What would be the attitude of the Church?" he was asked. "There is only one man who can answer that," Elder Benson replied, "and that's the President of the Church. My life is dedicated to this work, but I'd be glad to try to do anything the President of the Church asks me to do." Early the next morning Elder Benson encountered President McKay. "I received a very important telephone call last night," President McKay said. "Brother Benson, my mind is clear in the matter, and if the opportunity comes in the proper manner, I think you should accept." "President McKay," was the reply, "I can't believe that it will come." At Provo the next day, with Elder Mark E. Petersen, Elder Benson was assisting in the division of the Sharon Stake when he received a message from the Eisenhower headquarters. Before returning the call, he isolated himself in an office at Brigham Young University and telephoned to President McKay. The call was a request that he go to New York for an inter- view with the President-elect whom he had never met. He left by plane that night. Elder Benson had never had any yearning to get into politics. Though he was deeply interested in good government and the election of men of integrity and good judgment to office, his preference was to devote his own time and talents to the Church. "I don't want to be Secretary of Agriculture," he told his friends before leaving for New York. "I can't imagine anyone in his right mind wanting it." He was thinking of the pressures, the controversies, and the difficulties that that position would inevitably entail. The President-elect greeted his visitor warmly, and it was soon evident that the General had made up his mind. In response to his offer, Elder Benson, speaking with the utmost candor, cited several reasons why he shouldn't become a member of the Cabinet. First, he said, he had been a supporter of his distant cousin, Senator Taft, and then he had always thought it would be a little better, other things being equal, not to have a military man in the White House. The President-elect indicated that was perfectly all right. Elder Benson also mentioned that the President-elect might be expected to select a Secretary of Agriculture from the great farm belt. When the President commented that Elder Benson seemed to have the confidence of rural people to an unusual degree, Elder Benson replied that he thought that he did have their confidence and that he'd rather have that confidence than be Secretary and he wasn't sure that a man could be secretary and keep that confidence, too. And finally, Elder Benson said, "I wonder about the wisdom of calling a clergyman, a minister of the gospel, to be Secretary of Agriculture. What will be the reaction from other religious groups, from people generally?" "Suppose," General Eisenhower replied in substance, "we consider the last question first: Surely you believe that the job to be done is spiritual. Surely you know that we have a great responsibility to restore confidence in the minds of our people in their own government—that we have to deal with spiritual matters." When the President-elect had effectively disposed of the objections that Elder Benson had raised, he added: "We've got a great job to do. I didn't want to be President, frankly, when the pressure started. But you can't refuse to serve America. We've got a great job to do, and I want you on my team." The President-elect's urging that he accept a top responsibility to "serve America" could not be denied. As he had foreseen, at least in some measure, controversy began to swirl about Secretary Benson's head even before his confirmation. Though his nomination was promptly confirmed, many began to criticize him for his stand against the increase of regimentation and control of agriculture. Secretary Benson inherited an appalling farm problem. Before he took office in January 1953, farm income had undergone a drastic shrinkage under rigid war-time price support laws. Once in office he found he was bound to administer this law, under which the decline had occurred, until the 1955 harvest. Immediately Secretary Benson began the most extensive review of the farm problem ever conducted. The results of this study became the basis for the new Eisenhower farm policy sent to the Congress in 1954 which began to take effect on the 1955 crops. These recommendations geared production for use rather than for storage. It called for flexible price supports ranging from seventy-five to ninety percent of parity, with adjustments for each major crop in accord with the supply and demand situation at the beginning of each crop year. It was a realistic and at the same time a moderate retreat from the subsidization of unusable surpluses, and it won the support of the largest and most influential farm organizations. With many Congressmen from agricultural states, however, it proved to be very unpopular. The House Agriculture committee voted against flexible price supports by an overwhelming majority of twenty-one to eight. In the Senate committee nine out of fifteen votes went against this chief provision of the Eisenhower -Benson proposal. It looked as if the drive for common sense in agriculture would go down to inevitable defeat, and there was talk of an early departure from Washington for Secretary Benson. Without any loss of confidence, the Secretary kept up a constant fight for the course he believed to be right. His courage and logic proved to be contagious. Congress finally overturned the work of its committees on agriculture and passed the bill in a form that was quite acceptable to the President and the Secretary. Soon it became apparent that the new law could not operate effectively because of the huge price depressing surpluses accumulated under the recent rigid war-time supports. The Department of Agriculture estimated that these surpluses overhanging the market reduced the farm income by two billion dollars during 1955. Other measures giving more direct and immediate relief to the farmer would have to be taken if the farmer were to regain his relative standing in the national economy. Once more Secretary Benson launched a broad review of alternatives. When his advisory groups made their recommendations, he studied them carefully, adopting some and modifying or discarding others, until a supplementary program had taken shape. It was recommended to the Congress by the President on January 6, 1956. This 1956 program is a logical extension of the earlier policy. Featuring the so-called soil bank, it recognizes that the farmer is entitled to additional help while he is waiting for production to level off or consumption to increase and surpluses to be reduced. One phase of the new plan would offer him payments for putting into an "acreage reserve" part of his land customarily planted in such crops as corn, rice, wheat, and cotton. Another phase would result in long-range contracts between the Government and farmers for carrying out soil-conservation practices and for use of land for timber or grass or other "protective vegetative cover." The Secretary has met each problem that has arisen with resourcefulness, respect for facts, and a basic understanding of agriculture and of people. In order to keep closely in touch with farmers and their problems he has traveled about a quarter of a million miles and made hundreds of speeches. He never forgets that in the last analysis he is dealing with men and women—God's children. Sometimes he has been accused by his critics of showing more concern for the spiritual welfare of farm people than for improvement of their income. Actually, of course, the two aims are not exclusive. The truth is that, while working indefatigably for the temporal welfare of farm people, he has also encouraged the development of qualities that make for a richer life. On one occasion he declared that "there is little wrong with farmers and the rest of us that integrity, moral courage, and spirituality won't cure." Though nearly all his time is given to his official duties, he continues to live his religion, to attend the general conferences of the Church, and to establish contacts with Church groups on his travels. As the first member of the Church to hold a position in the cabinet, he and his wife and family have attracted widespread attention to the standards and teachings of the Church. Secretary Benson is the first clergyman to serve in the cabinet in one hundred years. He has been widely recognized for his meritorious service and leadership ability. Numerous citations and special recognitions have come to him, including seven honorary doctorate degrees. The Benson family has been widely- publicized and honored for its practices and achievements that are rooted in the gospel. The articles in national magazines and newspapers plus national TV and radio programs featuring the Benson's co-operative plan of family management, their home nights, their sense of cohesiveness, and their devotion to high ideals are too numerous to mention. On one occasion the Benson family gave a demonstration of their home night for President and Mrs. Eisenhower. On other occasions Sister Benson and her daughters have entertained the First Lady and the wives of cabinet members in the wholesome atmosphere of a Mormon home. Sister Benson was honored as the outstanding "Homemaker of the Year" (1955) by the National Home Fashions League. She has served in executive and teaching positions in ward, stake, and mission capacities wherever they have lived. Her tested counsel is frequently sought on matters of homemaking and child training. Washington has not disturbed the fine relationships in the Benson home. On one occasion when the Secretary was invited to an important dinner he responded, "Sorry, I have a date with my daughter Bonnie." It was a father-and-daughter party in the Washington Ward at which the daughters served their fathers and then took them on a scavenger hunt. The Secretary seemed to enjoy ringing doorbells in the neighborhood with fourteen-year-old Bonnie. They were fleet enough to win first prize. The Bensons' home nights are a source of much enjoyment as well as religious training. After the opening song and prayer and scripture reading, there may be a discussion of family problems. Then the parents and children may gather around the piano to sing, or they may put on some records for dancing. Sister Benson has been quoted as saying that "we often dance away our troubles," but many who know the family are more impressed by the way in which she organizes and manages home and family. Although she is gentle and soft-spoken, she pursues her aims with great tenacity and endurance. In hours of trial and discouragement she has sustained Elder Benson and in moments of triumph and elation she has maintained a womanly sense of proportion. Prayer in the home and a spirit of co-operation keep troubles from arising. The home nights serve also a means of settling family problems. All the children participate in the discussion of such questions as the color of the car the family is about to buy, what they should watch on television, and how the household duties shall be divided. When all the arguments have been presented, a vote is taken in the most democratic fashion, which means that the youthful point of view often prevails. Such a vote resulted in the purchase of a red car despite the Secretary's preference for black. The children have all excelled in Church, school, and civic activities. Reed, 28, a former Air Force chaplain, and now Washington Stake mission president, is working for the Republican National Committee delivering talks across the country and assisting his father in congressional political matters. Mark, twenty-seven, who married Lela Wing, has two children. With a master's degree from Stanford University, he is in business in Salt Lake City and serving in positions of leadership in the Church. Both sons have filled missions for the Church and served as district presidents. Barbara, twenty-one, married Dr. Robert Harris Walker and lives in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Beverly, eighteen, is a student at BYU. Bonnie, sixteen, attends Roosevelt High School in Washington, and Flora Beth, eleven, is in elementary school. Distance has changed means of communication but has not weakened their feeling of family solidarity. It is no secret that Elder Benson has found much of his strength, his determination, and his inspiration in his home. Throughout his career Elder Benson has demonstrated a high degree of spiritual-mindedness, courage, and strength of character in three spheres of activity: religion, family life, and agriculture. The influences that have been dominant in his life are his pioneer Mormon heritage, his childhood in an ideal Christian farm home, his service in the Church, and the inspiration of a wife-companion of exceptional talents, faithfulness, and devotion. A deeply religious man, he adheres to his principles without compromise regardless of what the circumstances may be. In Washington his superb moral courage is as well known as it is in Salt Lake City. At the same time he is a man of warm human understanding, with a fine tolerance for other people's religious convictions. His philosophy of life stems from the gospel and the United States Constitution. "It is my firm belief," he often says, "that the God of heaven raised up the founding fathers and inspired them to establish the Constitution of this land." He regards freedom as a "God-given, eternal principle," a heritage "more precious than life itself." But he believes that free men can attain their greatest potential only through initiative, self-reliance, co-operation, hard work, and prayer; that our republican form of government has its roots deep in the soil; and that the end of all government is to be the servant, not the master of the people. While he has been struggling to improve the lot of the farmer, Elder Benson has conveyed to millions of people a new sense of values. He has demonstrated in his own life the supreme practicality of Christ's teachings. Long after his work as Secretary of Agriculture has been finished, he will be recognized as an exemplar of a way of life that holds within itself the key to solution of the world's problems. [1] For biographical sketch see page 288. [2] This was one of the limited general conferences held by the Church during World War II. Only the priesthood-leadership of the Church were invited to attend. Within three months, however, Elder Benson had been sustained in his new calling at the quarterly stake conferences. [3] This was a rededication of that land. Elder Francis M. Lyman of the Council of the Twelve, then serving as president of the European Mission, dedicated Finland in August 1903. (See The Improvement Era, 6:923.) |
Elder Ezra Taft Benson and Sister Benson at the Inauguration of President Dwight D. Eisenhower in Washington, D. C, January 20, 1953.
George Taft Benson, father of Ezra Taft Benson.
Sarah Dunkley Benson, mother of Brother Benson.
Ezra Taft Benson at three months of age.
Sister Benson, with some of the children, including the eldest and tallest, "T," as young Ezra was affectionately called.
Ezra Taft Benson with his father. "T" stands to the left and back.
Elder Benson as president of the Newcastle Conference, England, (right, seated) with group of missionaries in 1922, with President and Sister McKay, who were presiding over the European Mission.
Elder Benson as county agent at Preston, Idaho, 1929.
Elder Benson and Brother Zimmer checking Church supplies stored in Geneva, Switzerland, for distribution to Saints in war-torn Europe.
For ten months while Brother Benson was European Mission president, Sister Benson held the family together in work and in play.
A home evening at the Bensons'. Reading the scriptures.
The Ezra Taft Benson family enjoy horseback riding in Virginia in 1954 on brief vacation.
Sister Ezra Taft Benson with the first grandchild, Stephen Reed, the son of Mark A. Benson and his wife, Lela.
The Benson family today, (left to right) Bottom row: Ezra Taft Benson, Stephen Reed Benson, Lela Wing (Mrs. Mark) Benson,
Stephanie (granddaughter) Benson, Flora Amussen Benson, and Flora Beth Benson. Back row: Dr. Robert Harris Walker, Barbara Benson Walker, Mark A. Benson, Bonnie A. Benson, Reed Benson, Beverly A. Benson, —Photo by Forsythe, USDA Photo
President Eisenhower being shown a pure-bred Holstein from the Dairy Experiment Station at Beltsville Research Center during the President's visit there in May 1953, by Secretary of Agriculture Ezra Tart Benson. Elder Benson being congratulated by members of the Scout Council, upon receiving Silver Antelope Regional Award.
Elder Benson with other US delegates to the International Federation of Agricultural Producers' organization meeting, London, England, in June 1946.
Sister Benson was honored by National Home Fashion League, October 26, 1955, as the outstanding American homemaker.
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