Roberta Mae (Harper) Weese-Bennett, 95, of Riverton passed away on Aug. 8, 2025, at Sentara RMH in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
She was born on July 7, 1930, at her family homeplace in Germany Valley, Riverton. She was the youngest of seven children born to the late Jason and Nela Day Harper.
Mrs. Weese-Bennett was a stay-at-home mother who made a comfortable home on her family’s farm in the Dolly Hills. She loved the land and clung to it until leaving this world. When asked about her occupation, she would proudly say, “I’m a farmer.” She raised many animals on that farm, but her favorite was her black-faced Suffolk sheep.
She was known for being a skilled baker and cook. Her speedy peach pies and raisin puff cookies were always a favorite family treat. Anyone eating at her table could count on a loaf of potato raisin’ bread being served with the meal as well. She first learned to make bread as a 10-year-old girl standing on a chair to reach the table while her mother gave her instruction. That was the first of thousands of loaves made during her life.
One of her most commendable accomplishments was pursuing a childhood love of music and teaching herself to play the guitar in her 60s. She went on to become part of The Snowy Mountain Boys band and cherished the comradery of the group to the very end. If she wasn’t on stage with the band, a person could find her square-dancing.
She became a lifetime member of VFW Women’s Auxiliary Chapter of Harman. She was a founding member of the Valley Chapel Church in Riverton.
She was the last surviving member of her immediate family.
Her first husband of 46 years, Paul A. Weese, preceded her in death in 1995. She remarried in 1999 to Quentin P. Bennett who passed away in 2013.
Surviving are her daughter, Shirley Sherman of Maysville; her son, Terry (Dorinda) Weese of Petersburg; daughter-in-law, Lois Weese of Scott Depot; seven grandchildren, Amanda and Cullen Sherman, Kristi Tankersley, Terrica Rumer, Brad Weese, Scott Weese and Lori Leary; 13 great-grandchildren, Bridger and Colter Mayle, Jackson Tankersley, Kelby, Addy, and Jalyn Rumer, Clara and Cooper Weese, Seth and Sean Weese, Madison, Emma, and Peyton Leary; three stepsons, Bradley, Jeff, and Preston Bennett with their spouses, children, and grandchildren; nieces and nephews.
She was also preceded in death by a son-in-law, John Sherman, who passed in 2016; a beloved son, Paul Allen Weese who passed in 2017; four sisters, Elsie (Roscoe) Hinkle, Gae (Herb) Landes, Leva (Clem) Harper and Lona (Robert) Hinkle; and two brothers, Orlando (infant) and Edsel (Gae) Harper.
A funeral service to celebrate her life was held Tuesday in the Basagic Funeral Home chapel with Pastor William (Andy) Botkins officiating. Interment followed in the North Fork Memorial Cemetery.
Memorial donations in her memory may be directed to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105.
