Bonnie L Bishop

Bonnie was born at Mount Carmel Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. She grew up on West 2nd Avenue in Grandview Heights, Ohio - a fact of which she was very proud. She was a competitive and successful butterfly swimmer while living in Grandview. Her family moved to Marion later on in childhood where she graduated from Marion Harding High School.

Bonnie then graduated from The Ohio State University College of Dentistry with a certificate in Dental Hygiene in 1963. She began her career as a Dental Hygienist with starting a brand new practice with Dr. Joseph Walker in Shaker Heights, Ohio. She stayed with his practice until they both retired after 25 years of working together.

After retiring from Dental Hygiene Bonnie pivoted her career to Child Life. She graduated with a Bachelor’s degree, this time in Family and Child Development from the University of Akron. She received her CCLS (Certified Child Life Specialist) and then moved to Galveston, Texas to pursue her Child Life career at Schriner’s Burns Hospital. She was instrumental in creating a summer camp for burn victims and creating a school re-entry program where team members traveled around the country and into Mexico to support burn victims and their families upon reentry into their normal lives. She also introduced music therapy into the Child Life program at this hospital.

Bonnie decided to continue her career back home in Columbus, Ohio to support her family. She joined Nationwide Children’s Hospital as a Certified Child Life Specialist in the Emergency Room and was a PRN Hospice Specialist for siblings of terminally ill children. Here she spoke at several conferences, co-authored articles about pain management in children, and began advocating for family-centered care before most people in the industry were familiar with this practice. She was a beloved part of the Emergency Room and Hospice teams until just a few weeks before her death.

Bonnie loved to ride her bike and tend to her many, many plants. Her favorite place was the beach. When not at work you’d always find her in a pair of flip flops, no matter the weather. You’d often find her with dyed purple or pink hair and the most fabulous earrings you could imagine - often chosen because she knew the children she supported at the hospital would like them. She was an avid supporter of everything her family loved, including her son Matt’s racing career. She became an avid IMSA Racing fan where soon everyone on the track knew her name. Her son’s team members adored her and even bestowed her with her own headset when she would visit so she could hear the team in action. When at home, if her TV wasn’t tuned to the latest IMSA race, she’d be listening to a 40’s or 50’s TV show with a Diet Coke in hand.

Bonnie’s most favorite thing, however, was her family. Bonnie was unsure of what she would be called as a grandmother. Kate suggested that she go with the first thing that Emma, her eldest granddaughter, said - then Emma said “Nanny”. Bonnie wasn’t thrilled about Emma’s choice of name but grew to be everyone’s “Nanny”.

She is predeceased by her parents John Robert and June Arlene, her brother-in-law Orison, and her favorite grand-dogs Fawn, Roxy, and Molly. She is survived by her daughter Kate (husband Steve), grandchildren Emma (partner Doug), Claire, and Ashley (partner Braden, children Faith and Ayden), son Matt (partner Katrina), her favorite travel partner, her sister Pat (husband Orison), and brother Bruce (wife Vicki). She is further survived by her nieces and nephews and their families: Tracy, (partner Alex), Troy (wife Karen), Brianne (sons Casen and Grady), and Shannon (husband Scott and sons Miles and Quinn). She is also survived by grand-niece and grand-nephew Hanna (husband Ryan and son Levi) and Benjamin.

Each and every one of the survived family members traveled to Columbus, from as far as Los Angeles and West Palm Beach, to visit Bonnie when she fell terminally ill. This reflects the dedication that Bonnie had to her family: she was always the first to volunteer to help, always was the first to take her grand-dogs on a walk around the block, and happily played her great-granddaughter Faith’s favorite date Carlos whenever asked. Her granddaughter Claire described her as “the world’s best hype man”. She would always have a fun activity or toy for her great grand-children in the car.

Bonnie lived an extraordinary life touching the hearts of everyone with whom she came in contact. She was the best mom, best grandma, and best great-grandmother. We miss her very much already. A Celebration of Life will be scheduled at a later date. Until then, celebrate her memory with a cold can of Diet Coke - the mini ones were her favorite.

In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate donations to Bonnie’s Brigade team for the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Columbus Marathon. Her granddaughter Emma will be running the full marathon in Bonnie’s memory in October. Donations to this team are directed to Family and Volunteer Services at the hospital in support of their Child Life program. Donations can be made at the following link:

https://give.nationwidechildrens.org/site/TR/Events/General?px=1776966&pg=personal&fr_id=1860