Richard D. Benton of Hawleyville passed away on January 18 at his home after a courageous fight with cancer. He was 75 years old.

Richard was born in Greenwich, Connecticut, on November 16, 1945. He was the last son of Frederick and Edith (Smith) Benton. He was three years old when he moved to Hawleyville. Richard attended Newtown schools and Trinity Episcopal Church.

Richard worked at Castro Convertible and Curtis Packaging in Sandy Hook, from where he retired. He was also a volunteer fireman at the Hawleyville Fire Department. He liked watching sports, and his favorite teams were the Boston Red Sox, the Patriots, and the Celtics. He also enjoyed stock car races.

He leaves behind his sister Jacqueline B. Plancon, and several nieces, nephews, and cousins. We are blessed to have his extended family, and we thank god for sending them to us.

His caregivers were Crystal Dube, Amber Dube, Aavonah Simpkins, Reginarose Ryan, Alysia Ryan, Evelyn Ryan, and Heather Perrault.

Funeral services will be held at Honan Funeral Home, 58 Main Street, Newtown, at 2 pm Saturday, January 23. Interment will follow in Newtown Village Cemetery. Calling hours are Saturday from 1 to 2 pm. Donations to American Cancer Society at cancer.org will be greatly appreciated.