Below is an obituary from Curlew Hills Memory Gardens:
WILMINGTON, MA — Dominic Beninati, age 94, a resident of Wilmington, MA and Port Charlotte, FL, passed away on Monday, August 14, 2023, at Suncoast Hospice and Care Center in Palm Harbor FL following a brief illness.
Dominic was the beloved husband of Jean Marie (Hohn) Beninati and recently celebrated their 67th wedding anniversary on June 30, 2023; devoted father to Donna Beninati and her husband Bob Lawson of ME, Steven Beninati of FL, Lauren Pedi and her husband Richard of MA, Dr. Janet Ross and her husband Steven of LA, dear brother of Cathy Gomes of East Bridgewater, and predeceased by siblings Joseph Beninati of Natick, MA, Anthony Beninati of Malden, MA, Angelina McCann of Brockton, MA, and Albert Beninati of Bridgewater, MA. Dominic will be most missed by his grandchildren Joseph Beninati, Alex Ardito, Dominic Pedi, Amy and Leanne Caswell, Christopher Pedi, Aaron Berman, and Beth Calabrese. He is also survived by many nieces and nephews.
On December 21, 1928, Dominic was born on the Island of Salina, Eolian Islands in Sicily to parents Giuseppe Beninati and Maria Sedoti Beninati. Dominic and brothers Joseph and Anthony were born in the family home in Capo Faro, Isole Salina with his parents and grandparents Giuseppe Beninati and Angela Delosa Beninati. The family immigrated to America making entrance through Ellis Island and established their home in Brighton, MA in 1942 before purchasing land in Bridgewater, MA establishing the Beninati Farm in 1947.
Dominic enlisted in the USMC in 1947 during the Korean War attaining the rank of Sergeant as an automotive mechanic and mortar gunner and following an honorable discharge in 1952 he returned to the family farm in Bridgewater, MA. He earned a baccalaureate degree from the State Teachers College in Boston and while attending school was introduced to Jean (Hohn) Beninati and married Jean in 1956. While starting their family Dominic completed his master’s degree in education and accepted a teaching position in the Saugus school system. He taught industrial arts which included metalworking, drafting, woodworking, auto mechanics, and driver education, and quickly earned promotion to Vice Principal at Saugus High School with responsibilities in the formulation of policies, organizational plans, and goals for ensuring the safety and well-being of his students retiring after 36 years in teaching.
Dominic and Jean settled in Wilmington, MA where Dominic built their first home with assistance from his brothers Joseph and Anthony. Dominic was a skilled self-taught carpenter and mason who spent weekends and summers using his talents to work side jobs to supplement his family’s income. He used his carpentry skills to craft tables, desks, chairs, bed frames, and dressers for his home to accommodate his and Jean’s growing family of four children. In Wilmington, he grew a large vegetable garden brimming with multi varieties of tomatoes, squash, corn, eggplant, peppers, green beans, black and blueberries, and fruited trees that included peach, apple, and a fig tree that Dominic lovingly buried underground each winter.
Dominic soon after built the family’s summer cottage in Mattapoisett, MA with a large sprawling vegetable garden that was the envy and enjoyment of their Brandt Beach friends and neighbors. Dominic built a cabin cruiser the family frequently used to enjoy fishing outings on Buzzard’s Bay and taught his children the fine art of digging for quahogs during low tide. In later years Dominic and Jean enjoyed touring regions of Europe and most memorably the Eolian Islands in Sicily and his birth home in Capo Faro, Isole Salina.
In 1989 Dominic and Jean retired to Port Charlotte, FL where they could devote time taking their grandchildren boating on the canal and through Charlotte Harbor to view the beauty of mangroves, manatees, and alligators on the Peace River. Grandsons Alex, Dominic, and Joe were blessed to share Grampa’s company cruising the waterways on Gramma and Grampa’s boat waiting for an opportunity to steer atop a perch on Grampa’s lap. In Dominic’s later years, his three grandsons spent much time with Gramma and Grampa in Mattapoisett and there learned how to catch scup with droplines, dig mussels, clams, and quahogs, collected crabs and periwinkles from beach rocks, scale their own fish, and under a watchful eye shown how to safely fire a BB gun, and most cherished evening campfires to roast hot dogs and marshmallows. Dominic’s legacy remains alive in Joey who chose to honor his Grampa upon his decision to join the Army and after many discussions with his Grampa about service life. His legacy lives on in Alex and Dominic and Grampa’s reminders to take pride in their personal talents and accomplishments and remain thankful for the joys found in fishing and the outdoors.
A Funeral Mass was celebrated at St Lukes the Evangelist Catholic Church on Tuesday August 22, 2023 promptly at 10:00 am 2757 Alderman Road Palm Harbor, FL 34684. A Military Burial Ceremony at Florida National Cemetery commenced at 2:00 pm at 6502 SW 102nd Ave., Bushnell, FL 33513.
Like Wilmington Apple on Facebook. Follow Wilmington Apple on Twitter. Follow Wilmington Apple on Instagram. Subscribe to Wilmington Apple’s daily email newsletter HERE. Got a comment, question, photo, press release, or news tip? Email wilmingtonapple@gmail.com.
Wilmington Apple 