Ann Patronella Bonefas

Born March 23, 1933, in Humble, Texas (“Actually it was in an old frame house 6 miles south of Humble”, she used to tell us), the family moved several times before finally settling in the Lazybrook Area of Houston, Texas. She attended Holy Name Catholic School and entered Sacred Heart Dominican College/St. Joseph School of Nursing in 1951 and graduated in 1955 with her nursing degree. She married Robert A. Bonefas in September of 1960, and had six children, divorcing later in 1976. Ann was very proud of her children, and she would often brag, “six kids in 5years!”

Ann belonged to the visiting nurse association and visited recovering patients in their homes and was a pioneer in the field of physical therapy when there was not yet a field for it. She worked at Jeff Davis Hospital for many years, and she also worked for Houston Independent School District for 28 years, 10 of those years dedicated to Booker T. Washington High School. Ann would also work weekends at Memorial Northwest Hospital. In 1976 she went back to college at the University of Houston to obtain her Masters, working full time and weekends while going to school, and raising six children, graduating in 1980. She retired in 1994 and stayed active by working in her yard, walking a mile twice a day and maintaining her rental properties. She was active in her church, St. Maximilian of Kobe on West Rd in Houston and participated in the St. Joseph table production yearly. In her late 80’s into her 90’s she was an active participant with her local Civic Club and was also on the Board of the HOA.

Ann loved to hit the dollar stores and always had gifts aplenty to give to her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. She was still driving at 90 years, until she suffered a stroke late last year. Ann maintained relationships with her college classmates from nursing school; she looked forward to and enjoyed their annual get-togethers, adventures, or their girls’ weekends at one of their friend’s Galveston beach house.

When her children were young, she sewed a good majority of their clothes. She was a master seamstress and could look at an outfit and recreate the outfit from memory. Ann also loved to crochet; she crocheted beautiful doilies as well hand towels (she kept them on hand to give at a moment’s notice to brighten someone’s day or for a housewarming gift), she was also very talented with embroidery as well; Ann continued to sew until her passing.

Ann was preceded in life by her parents, Clarence Clinton Patronella and Helen Josephine Bila Patronella, her brother Clarence “Junior” Patronella, her sister, Rosemarie Patronella, and her youngest brother, Richard Patronella.

Ann is survived by her children and their spouses, Matthew Bonefas & wife Shelley, Chris Bonefas & wife Di, Gregory Bonefas wife Gena, Maureen Bonefas, Maurice Bonefas and Vincent Bonefas & wife Kristi as well as her 12 grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren.

I will leave you with this, I think momma would have liked it:

MEMORY OF ME

I’d like the memory of me to be a happy one.

I’d like to leave an afterglow of smiles when life is done.

I’d like to leave an echo whispering softly down the ways,

Of happy times, and bright and sunny days.

I’d like the tears of those who grieve, to dry before the sun,

With all of the happy memories that I leave when my life is done.