SOUTH PARIS – Claudia Carol (Coyne/Hutto) Benge, 77, of Norway, formerly of Lovell, died on Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020 at the Maine Veterans Home in South Paris. She was born June 21, 1943.

Predeceased by her parents, Charles Hutto and Dorothy (Kimball) Force, Claudia was an amazing big sister to brothers Buzzy (Charles Jr.), Gary and Wayne. She attended Buxton grammar school and graduated in 1961 with the last graduating class of the Buxton High School. As a ‘Buxton Bulldog’, she was a proud member of the girls’ basketball, bowling and swim teams. People of that era think of Claudia with her rolled up blue jeans (pedal pushers), bouncing, blonde ponytail and always sparkling, smiling blue eyes. She was either drinking a Pepsi Cola laid out over the living room chair talking to Franny, or Linda, or Judy, or Elaine, or Beth or Nancy, or she was in the Reitze’s living room teaching us how to dance with Dick Clark’s American Bandstand on TV.

She attended keypunch school in Portland after her high school graduation; that opened an employment opportunity at a local bank. She moved on to bigger and better opportunities in Washington D.C. and in 1963, joined the U.S. Army. As a WAC, Claudia served as a medical corpsman at Fort Sam Houston and later in Ft. Hood. Her MOS changed and she became a driver delivering supplies all over the base. She met everyone, including her future husband, Charles Benge, also in the Army. They were married March 31, 1964. Throughout Charlies’ Army career, they had the pleasure of being stationed in many states across the U.S. and in Germany for a year. After Charlies’ retirement from the military, they moved to Westbrook, Maine and Claudia worked in management at UNUM for 25 years.

Claudia and Charlie became the proud parents of two sons, John and his wife Melody of Bangor, and Scott and his wife Angela of Fort Wayne, Ind. They have six beautiful grandchildren, John Jr., Alex, Seth, Michael, Dionysios and Estella. She was predeceased by her husband of 53 years, and her brother, Buz. She leaves behind everyone who knew and loved her (and that is everyone who had the privilege and pleasure of knowing her) including her Dixie Doodle. Until we meet again Claudia…say hi to everyone up there for us. See you soon.

Cremation arrangements are in the care of the Hall Funeral Home, 165 Quaker Ridge Road in Casco. Private interment will take place at the No. 4 Cemetery in Lovell. Please consider sharing you kind words, condolences and tributes at http://www.hallfuneralhome.net.