Rev. Woodrow Wilson Benton, Jr. (1941-2025) was welcomed into his Savior’s presence on January 26 at age 83, after an extended battle with Alzheimer’s disease.
A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m., Friday, January 31, 2025, at Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee, with visitation following.
He was born on April 25, 1941, to Woodrow and Elizabeth Benton. He grew up in Brandon, Mississippi, where his father was a ruling elder at Brandon Presbyterian Church. He was a gifted athlete. According to childhood friend, Wayne Herring, at age 12, Benton led his football team to an undefeated season and the state championship. He was a skilled tennis player, and his parents built a clay tennis court in their yard so that Benton could play. The court, and the Coke machine with free beverages, became a social hub for Brandon’s teenagers.
He was also an excellent student, blessed with a photographic memory that he retained until late in life. According to Herring, Benton finished at the top of his classes at Belhaven College and Columbia Theological Seminary. His academic excellence earned him a scholarship for doctoral work at the University of Edinburgh.
Benton was ordained to the gospel ministry in 1966. His pastoral ministry included service as pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Cleveland, Mississippi, from 1970-1982; Covenant Presbyterian Church in Cleveland, Mississippi, from 1982-1985; Kirk of the Hills Presbyterian in St. Louis, Missouri from 1986-2006; and Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee, from 2007-2012.
Benton served as moderator of the 20th General Assembly and several terms as chairman of the permanent committees for Mission to North America and Reformed University Ministries.
For nearly 21 years Benton was the senior pastor of Kirk of the Hills, and for 10 of those years Stephen Estock worked as an associate pastor under Benton. When he came to Kirk of the Hills in 2002, Estock was heading toward ministry burnout, but working for Benton was a time of “refreshment and growth in ministry,” he said. Benton not only mentored him in his role as a pastor, but also as a father.
“In Wilson, I saw a man who loved Jesus, loved his family, and loved his congregation in spirit and truth,” Estock said. Even though Benton’s children were grown by the time Estock came to Kirk of the Hills, Benton deeply loved them and loved the children of the church.
Because of his passion for Christian education, Benton was instrumental in starting The Kirk Day School in St. Louis as well as Promise Christian Academy, a school for children with special needs.
In addition to his work as a pastor, Benton was an adjunct professor at Covenant Theological Seminary, serving as a homiletics instructor and a professor in the Doctor of Ministry program.
“As a student, I was in awe of Dr. Benton’s command of Scripture and his gift for delivering sermons that stirred our minds and moved our hearts,” said Tom Gibbs, president of Covenant Theological Seminary. “Over the years, though, what I came to most appreciate about Wilson and Pam was their warm hospitality and commitment to faithfully shepherding those the Lord put in their path. Wilson was a giant in the PCA, and he will be missed by all of us.”
Though Estock is now the coordinator for PCA Discipleship Ministries, he sees Benton’s lasting influence on his work.
“So much of who I am as a pastor is connected with what God taught me through Wilson Benton. I am deeply grateful for the time I had under his tutelage,” he said.
When Benton retired from ministry at Kirk of the Hills, he had planned to serve with Covenant Seminary and help with church revitalization through Briarwood Presbyterian Church. But when Christ Presbyterian Church in Nashville asked him to serve as interim pastor, he agreed to serve for 18 months. The 18-month commitment turned into five years.
Right before his planned retirement from Christ Presbyterian Church, Benton’s wife, Pam, began to notice some changes in her husband. He started to repeat himself in a way that reminded Pam of her mother-in-law’s Alzheimer’s disease progression (Wilson’s and Pam’s mothers both had Alzheimer’s disease). Benton was diagnosed in 2012.
As Benton’s memory declined, Pam described in a 2020 podcast that he became more of who he had always been. “Wilson is sweet and thoughtful. He’s become more of who he is in terms of being a gentleman, of being loving, of being affirming to me. And yes, he’s sick, and yes, there are very hard times,” she said. “The more I get out and about, the more grateful I am.”
He is survived by his wife Pam, whom he married in 1963; his children Louis Benton (Damea) of Hattiesburg, Mississippi; Paige Brown (Reagan) of Nashville, Tennessee; and Laura Pearson (John) of Lexington, Virginia; his grandchildren Wilson (Mallory), Jackson (Ashley), Barnes, and Ford Benton; Benton, Louisa, and Frances Brown; Marion, Maxwell, and Libby Pearson; and great granddaughter Ramsay Benton.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Benton’s honor to Reformed University Fellowship.