She was born January 7, 1927, to Lloyd and Mabel Steeby, in Savannah, Missouri.
After graduating from high school in 1944, Margie worked with her future husband at his family’s store, Bonner Grocery. Then while he was in the Army toward the end of World War II, Margie was a civilian employee of the U.S. Army. As the first woman many soldiers had seen in a very long time, she had many interesting experiences while issuing final paychecks to returning soldiers.
She graduated from the Kansas City Secretarial College and began a long career as an efficient and diplomatic secretary, receptionist, and administrative assistant who had the highest standards for her work and could always be counted on to get the job done. She remained friends with many of her coworkers for the rest of her life.
Margie loved her family immensely. She recently celebrated her 74th wedding anniversary with her high school sweetheart, Donald J. Bonner, whom she married on May 23, 1948. They had two children, J. Kirk Bonner and Karen Bonner Gallagher. Don and Margie lived in St. Joseph, MO, and the surrounding area for many years and were founding members of Ashland Avenue United Methodist Church. In 2005 they moved to the Kansas City area to be nearer their daughter, son-in-law, and grandsons. She never missed her children’s or grandchildren’s concerts or sporting events or any other family celebrations.
Margie was an athlete all her life, trained to run and play softball (first base, shortstop) by her dad on the family farm as a youngster. She took up running 5K races in her mid-50’s and won first prize in her age group in many races for several years. She was an avid fan of the Kansas City Royals and Kansas City Chiefs and rarely missed watching the games. She called all the players “my boys.” One of her favorite memories was getting to see the Royals beat the Cardinals in Busch Stadium in St. Louis in the 1985 World Series with her daughter.
Margie loved music, played the piano, organ, and harmonica and sang in her St. Joseph church choir for many years. She enjoyed the New Orleans Jazz Festival, the Scott Joplin Ragtime Festival, and the musicians at Country Club Christian Church in Kansas City.
Growing up on a farm gave Margie a love of nature and growing things. She had a table in front of her house in Prairie Village with a sign for neighbors or passers-by to take any of the fresh vegetables from her garden which she would set out during the harvesting season. Many mimosa trees in Prairie Village are from seedlings she nurtured for two years before offering them to friends and neighbors.
Margie was generous and compassionate and made many meals for friends, grieving families, young parents with new babies, and people who had sick family members. She could always be counted on to open her home to people who needed a place to stay for a night or for a few years.
She was preceded in death by her parents, her older sister, Virginia Cox Glauser, her younger sister, Georgia Ann Wall Sparks, and her son, J. Kirk Bonner, all of whom she dearly missed.
She is survived by her husband, Don, of Prairie Village, KS, her daughter, Karen Gallagher (Harry), and grandsons, Ben Gallagher of Los Angeles, CA, Captain Ted Gallagher (Elizabeth) of Dawsonville, GA, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins.
Visitation will be at 10:30 a.m. and funeral services will be at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, June 18, at Country Club Christian Church, 6101 Ward Parkway, Kansas City, MO. Brief graveside services will be at 1:30 p.m. at Savannah Cemetery, 308 West Benton Street, Savannah, MO. Memorial contributions in Margie’s name may be made to Country Club Christian Church.
