Bonnie Jo Middleton's Obituary
Bonnie Jo Middleton, daughter Dorsey M. and Merle L. Burd Howe, was born September 2, 1935, near Long Lane, Missouri. She departed this life Thursday, January 26, 2006, in Citizens Memorial Hospital, in Bolivar, Missouri, at the age of seventy years, four months, and twenty-four days. She was preceded in death by her parents; her stepmother, Bethel M. Howe; a brother, Leland Stanley Howe; a sister, Carol Jane Howe; and a brother-in-law, George L. “Butch” Hoke. Bonnie Jo is survived by a daughter, Christina Anne (Middleton) Mateer, of Lake Tahoe, California; two sons, Thomas Andrew Middleton, of Sasebo, Japan, and Douglas Arthur Middleton, of Boston, Massachusetts; two brothers, Larry Howe, and his wife, Janie, of Polo, Missouri, and Kenneth Howe, and his wife, Valerie, of Lebanon, Missouri; a sister, Gerry Hoke, of Lebanon, Missouri; several nieces and nephews; as well as a host of other relatives and friends. She was born and raised near Long Lane, Missouri, and graduated from Lebanon High School. She was a civil service worker at Fort Leonard Wood for a few years. Most of her life was spent on the East Coast, in Pennsylvania and Massachusetts. Besides being a devoted homemaker to her family, she also worked as an executive secretary for the General Electric Company for several years. Later in her life, she returned to Missouri, and made her home in Springfield and Buffalo. Bonnie Jo attended Grace Community United Methodist Church in Buffalo, where she greatly enjoyed Bible study. In her spare time she enjoyed reading and being around people. She bore her illness with great dignity and made the best of every day. She always possessed a positive attitude which she shared with all those around her. Bonnie Jo will be fondly remembered and greatly missed by all of her family and many friends. We celebrate her life and will cherish the memories she created for her family and friends. Services will be held at 10:00 a.m. Monday, January 30, 2006, in the Grace Community United Methodist Church in Buffalo, Missouri. Burial will be in the New Hope Cemetery near Long Lane, Missouri. Visitation will be held Monday morning from 9:00 a.m. until service time in the the church. Services are under the direction of Holman-Howe Funeral Home of Lebanon, Missouri. Memorial contributions to the Dallas County Library Fund may be made through the funeral home.
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