Gata Benton Hudson

Gata Benton Hudson was born on November 18, 1950, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She spent her childhood years with her brother, Peter Benton, growing up in Greenwich Village in New York City. At the age of 15, she met who would become the love of her life, Charles Hudson. On January 1, 1969, at the age of 18, she took Chuck's hand in marriage. They spent some time in Rockland County NY, where Chuck attended the Collaberg School, making lifelong friends. They traveled to California in a Volkswagen bus before returning to New York. In the 1970s, they landed in Marlow, New Hampshire, and not long after, Unity, New Hampshire. Initially, they rented before purchasing property in Unity. Chuck and Gata built a timber-frame home, and Gata gave birth to their first child, John Roger Hudson, in July of 1977. Their second son, Ethan, arrived in June of 1981.

Gata embodied love above all else. She was a wife, mother and grandmother, a friend to many. Gata was known for her kindness, bright smile, and infectious laugh. In the words of one friend, "Gata was a dear friend... perhaps the kindest person I knew." Gata was an incredible artist; she played the guitar and sang. She had a passion for knitting, sewing, quilting, beadwork, and many other crafts. She sold some of her crafts under the name GDB Designs and frequently had a booth at the Newport, NH, library arts crafts sale between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Probably her greatest passion, besides her love for family and friends, was gardening. She spent many years building and maintaining beautiful perennial gardens on her property. Her living room reminded many of a greenhouse rather than a typical living room.

She was an active member of the community, serving on the Unity School Board for many years, working as a ballot clerk for the town, and working for the library. In recent years, she accepted a position as the president of the Soo-Nipi Quilters Guild. She was a dear friend to many, always there for her husband, family, and friends. Gata spent several years as a housecleaner and also worked for a friend cultivating daylilies. Her personal garden grew to have over 100 varieties of daylilies among many other perennials.

Unfortunately, in 2012, Gata was diagnosed with three types of blood cancer: Waldenström macroglobulinemia, Chronic lymphocytic leukemia and follicular non-hodgkins lymphoma. Gata learned to live with and accept adversity throughout life and put up a fierce fight, staying in remission for the majority of the time since diagnosis. Sadly, she lost the battle.

Gata is survived by her sons John Hudson of Goshen NH, Ethan Hudson of Unity NH. Her grandaughter Azalea Hudson of Goshen VT. Her brother Peter Benton and his wife Margaret Benton of Brooklyn NY, her niece Susannah Benton of Austin, TX, and nephew Jonah Benton of NY, her sister inlaw Julia Knox-Hudson of Augusta SC, her three Nieces, Debby Wood of S. Carolina, Betsy Eisenmann of Boston, MA, and Cathy Paradise of Augusta GA.

Gata was predeceased by her Mother Nancy Ischer Benton, father James Rule Frederic Benton, and husband Charles Alfred Hudson

In lieu of flowers, please plant a tree, a daylily, or a plant of your choice in memory of Gata.

The family is planning a celebration of life for the summer of 2025.

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