Stanley Neal Bonner

Stan was born in Glennwood Iowa to Dr Norman Neal & Gertrude Bonner in the parsonage of the Pilgrim Holiness church where his maternal Grandparents, Rev Harry & Rev Nina Downing were pastoring. When he was almost 2, his parents went to Haiti as missionaries. They returned a few years later to attend classes at Upland College in CA. His brother Bob was born there in 1945 and they were then assigned as missionaries to South Africa. When Stan was 7 years old he was sent to boarding school in South Africa, which he always described as a difficult experience. His family returned to the States on furlough when he was about 13 as passengers on the Queen Mary. He stayed with his Grandpa Bonners on their farm in Tabor Iowa for about a year where he worked while his parents ministered and raised funds across the States so they could return to SA. When Stan was 18 he returned to the States by himself to attend Eastern Pilgrim College in Allentown PA. His family came home the following year, and he followed them to Bartlesville OK, when his father accepted the presidency of Central Pilgrim College which is now Oklahoma Wesleyan University and he briefly attended there. He then transferred to Upland College in CA to earn a BA in History.

He was the Youth Pastor at the Chino Pilgrim Holiness Church in CA for several years. While attending a youth retreat at Big Bear Lake in 1963, he met his future wife Maureen Groff. They were later married on June 25, 1965. He drove school buses in OK & CA to pay for college. He was a taxi cab driver in CA during the Watts riots in 1965. He then enrolled in the University of Southern California’s teacher straining program where he obtained a lifetime CA teaching certificate. He taught at Lorena St elementary school in east LA for 6 years.

Stan loved being a father and he had his first child, Sean, on Oct 3, 1970. He also loved working with young people and he taught Jr High Sunday School classes, led bible studies for college age, and took teens on trips to the BIC Mission on skid row in San Francisco. He felt Gods call to full time Christian service so he moved with his family to Portland OR in 1973 to take classes at Western Evangelical Seminary. There he was the visitation pastor at a Wesleyan church. He had been offered a position to be a missionary to South Africa by the Brethren in Christ mission board but it was rescinded after they made the decision to only use native leaders graduating from their overseas Bible Schools.

He along with his wife accepted a position as houseparent's in a girls group home through Youth Outreach in Vancouver WA where they lived with 7 girls with troubled pasts. That experience taught them a lot about spiritual warfare, He then accepted a position as principle of a new kindergarten school that the Foursquare Church in Gresham Oregon was starting. Later his family moved into a rental owned by the Western Evangelical Seminary which was close to where his parents were then living and his father was teaching. Rent was cheap since they hosted 1-2 seminary students who paid for room & board. Stan attended Hebrew classes while there & took a job as a High School custodian. He had his second son, Michael on Nov 21, 1977, but after a brief illness he died in May 1978 at the age of 6 months. This was one of the hardest periods of his life but God blessed him again in Dec 27, 1979 with a 3rd son, Joshua. Stan’s parents returned to Bartlesville OK in 1980 after accepting teaching positions at Bartlesville Wesleyan College (now OWU) which had been renamed following the church merger. He decided to follow them as he wanted to be close to family. After a year, he was called to pastor a Wesleyan Church in Plattsmouth NE. After 3 years, he and his family had had enough of the cold winters and decided to move to Brooksville FL where his parents had recently retired in the Wesleyan Village in 1984. While there he was the Youth pastor & grounds maintenance person at the Brooksville Wesleyan Church.

In 1994, at the age of 53, he became very sick and was bedridden with a severe episode of rheumatoid arthritis. After a year of various treatments he wanted to give up, but a young pastor from the Spring Hill Wesleyan church (now FCC) along with a retired pastor came to our house & prayed with him. With a renewed faith & hope, his health improved and his RA went into remission. Our loving God & Father healed him over & over. By 1996 he was singing in the church choir again and working part time, mowing the lawns at Fellowship Community Church. He also served on the church board, & taught HS Sunday School class. Over the following years he was diagnosed with a number of significant ailments including Diabetes, Leukemia, Heart attack, and Parkinson’s. But he always recovered over & over. His doctor of many years called him the Miracle man.

Stan loved the outdoors and took his family on many camping trips on land & sea. He loved riding motorcycles, and owned several over the years. He also enjoyed boating, especially sailing. His family has many memories of these shared adventures. He lived in the Brooksville & Spring Hill area for 41 years and celebrated his 85th birthday in Sept. He is survived by his wife of 60 years, Maureen, two sons Sean and Josh, along with daughter-in-law Kari, grandsons Reyce & Cecil and recently born granddaughter Joy, who he was so happy to have lived to see. He is also survived by his brother Robert (Bob) Bonner, nephews Jared Bonner and Jon Asper, and nieces Colleen Westfall & Kellie Boiston. Loved ones that preceded him in death - parents Norman and Gertrude Bonner, son Michael Bonner, Lawrence & Olga Groff (in-laws) and Ellis & Kathleen Asper (brother & sister in-law), and niece Julie Bonner and (sister-in-law) Linda Bonner who went to be with Jesus the day after him. Stan has chosen a green burial in Green Meadows at the Brooksville Cemetery.