top of page

Shirley Bennington, 82

 

Shirley Bennington is a grandmother to myself and four other girls: my older sister and three cousins. Born and raised in Virginia - my own birthplace, as well as home state to the famous Smithfield Hams - she is as East Coast as East Coast gets. Shirley began modeling at the age of 15. Later, she attended a finishing school for women, where the curriculum consisted of acquiring social graces and perfecting lady-like behavior. She married my grandfather ("Grandpa Tom," we call him), and together they had two daughters - my mother and aunt - who then had two and three more daughters, respectively. The greatest compliment I have ever received from my own mother is that I remind her of her's, as my grandmother Shirley is known in our family for her quick wit and love of life.

 

Though her modeling career has come to an end, Shirley can still be found on the dance floor tapping to fifties classics with her group "The Snappy Tappers." I frequently refer to her as "my grandmother who can still do the splits," as she does so every morning at the crack of dawn, even when she's visiting our house in California. When the lingering smell of brewed coffee is as strong as the sound of the morning news through the walls, we know grandma's awake doing her daily stretches. Aside from dance, she stays active working at The Pink Elephant Thrift Shop in Springfield, Virginia, and traveling to popular European destinations with her boyfriend, Gene. She is, quite literally, Supergrandma.

Have another listen:

As we have nearly 3,000 miles of distance between us, my interview with my grandmother had to be conducted via phone. I challenged her with the task ofhad audio recording herself on her end during the call, so as to avoid the static and displeasing cacophony of sounds that can occur as a result of recording over a cellular device. Fortunately, she had her hands on an iPhone 6 even before some of her own grandchildren did, so she knew her way around the technology. "I've learned a lot about my phone during this process. Thank you honey," she wrote me in an email with her successfully attached audio recording from our phone interview. Have another listen to her story below.

bottom of page