BONNER, Daniel L., age 77

Died: Wednesday, April 16th, 2014

Memorial Service: 11:00 a.m. on Friday April 25, 2014 at Trinity Lutheran Church in Eau Claire with the Pastor Sarah Semmler Smith officiating

Visitation: one hour prior to service

In lieu of flowers, the family prefers memorials be given to the charity of the donor's choice

Daniel Loyal Bonner, age 77, of Eau Claire, a devoted family man with a strong Christian faith and a big love for fishing and hunting, died on Wednesday, April 16, 2014 in Eau Claire. He was 77 and had been suffering from Alzheimer's disease and cancer.

Bonner was born on August 21, 1936, in Boyceville, Wisconsin to the late Guy and Mayme (Blodgett) Bonner, who preceded him in death in 1968 and 1983, respectively, and spent his childhood in the Barron area. He graduated from Barron High School in 1954, served in the U.S. Air Force from 1954-1958 and graduated with a B.S. degree from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls in 1963. He married his high school sweetheart, Joyce Lucille Mullen, on Feb. 25, 1956 at First Lutheran Church in Barron. They had five sons. Dan was very proud of his sons. 

Bonner, who started his career as a farmer, spent most of his professional life in Sales and Marketing with Amoco Oil Company from 1964 to 1983 and ConAgra from 1983 to 1997. His work took him and his family to Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Tennessee, Illinois and Montana before retirement to Eau Claire in 1997.

Daniel is survived by his wife, Joyce of Eau Claire; sons, Bruce (Denise) of Minneapolis, MN, Brian of Kyiv, Ukraine, Michael (Heidi) of Omaha, NE, Jeffrey of Ankeny, IA, and Bradley (Christina) of Eden Prairie, MN; grandchildren, Krystal (Timothy Ahders), Hope (Matthew Thornton), Heidi (Kevin Palmer), Lucas (Kally) Bonner, Isaac and Mallis Bonner, Logan Bonner, and Julia and Alyssa Bonner; nine great-grandchildren; sisters, Dorothy Ostenson, Charlotte Baker and June Patterson, all of Washington state; nieces, nephews and cousins.

He was preceded in death by his parents-in-law, Joseph and Lucille Mullen; sisters, Jean Tuttle and Norma Goff; brother, Russell.

His family is grateful to his physicians and nurses at Mayo Health Systems and the Clairemont Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, both in Eau Claire, who gave him excellent care in recent years.

His family and friends will miss him greatly, but find comfort in the certainty of his Christian faith and his readiness to answer God's call home. We will always remember his ready smile.