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was born June 27, 1941 in Emporia, Kansas. She passed away Oct. 16, 2015 in Superior.
Cynthia was the oldest of four children born to Oscar and Evangeline Oppliger; Michael (Donna Oppliger), Georgean (Ross Hughes), and Rick (Lisa Oppliger).
Cynthia spent her childhood growing up primarily in Northern Arizona. She attended school in the Grand Canyon and Williams, AZ and often told stories about her early years at the Canyon. After graduating from high school, Cynthia briefly attended St. Joseph’s with aspirations of becoming a nurse. She soon discovered nursing wasn’t her calling and transferred to Arizona State University where she majored in Secondary Education with a dual minor in Spanish and English. It was while she was at ASU that she met her husband of 39 years, Lynn Benson.
Lynn and Cindi had 2 children, Arlynn Godinez and Lynn (Shelly) Benson, 5 grand children (Gabriela Godinez, Nicole Godinez, Bruno Godinez, Tyler Benson and Connor Benson), and 1 great grandson (Mario Jimenez).
Cynthia and Lynn moved to Superior, AZ in 1972 where she taught high school English. She spent the next 20 or so years as a teacher, Student Council Sponsor, and Cheer Sponsor. She loved working with students and each student that walked through her classroom made an impact on her life. She knew the students and the struggles that many of them had which led her to pursue her Master’s Degree in Counseling. She later became the Guidance Counselor at Superior High School then spent time as the Guidance Counselor at Parker High School.
After leaving Parker, Cindi retired but soon found that retirement wasn’t all she thought it would be and was soon drawn back into the school system. She returned as a part time speech aide and soon afterward, she was back in the high school Guidance Counseling position. In 2010, she retired for good but remained active in many ways. She was on the St. Francis Parish Council and was a long time School Board Member. Her goals always remained the same, to try and make the schools and community of Superior a better place for children.
The Memorial Service for Cynthia Benson will be on Nov. 21, 2015 at St. Francis of Assisi Church in Superior beginning at 9:30 am with a luncheon to follow at Superior Jr./Sr. High School.
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