James Reese Bonham

James Reese (Jim) Bonham passed away in Portland, Oregon, March 11, 2025, at the age of 94, at home on his floating home at Rocky Pointe Marina on Multnomah channel. He was born on January 13, 1931, in Roswell, New Mexico to Warford Earl Bonham and Lillie Greening Bonham. He had two older brothers: twins Bobby and Billy, and one younger brother Tommy. His father Warford passed away when Jimmy was only 13 years old, and older brother Bobby was killed and younger brother Tommy was severely injured in a motorcycle accident 7 years later. The family lived simply and economically, growing their own food and raising animals for milk and meat. All four sons learned to shoot early and were among the best shots in town. Every year in November there would be a target shooting contest whose grand prize was a Thanksgiving turkey, and the brothers recall that their mother Lillie (“Mornie”) never bought a turkey because she could always count on one of her sons to win the prize. Younger brother Tommy remembers that he and Jimmy were always involved in one skirmish or another. Once Tommy decided that he would stop fighting with Jimmy and instead, went out to help Jimmy work on his mom’s car. He recalls: Jimmy asked me to go get a tool he needed in the shop. I didn’t know where it was, but he started giving me directions where to find it. "Go more to the left, then to the right”, etcetera. Suddenly, there was a bucket of water dumping on his head, and Tommy realized that once again, he had been tricked! Needless to say, the truce was over.

Jim graduated from Roswell High School and received his degree in electrical engineering from New Mexico State University. His first wife was Miss Roetta Pickering of Roswell, whom he married in late 1952, when he was 21, and she was 18. The marriage ended in divorce.

While on active duty in the U.S. Air Force 1954-57, Jimmy was stationed at Lackland and Kelly Air Force bases in San Antonio, Texas; Lowry in Colorado; and finally Kirknewton, Scotland. His dream was to be a pilot, but his near-sightedness disqualified him. Nevertheless he served our country in the 6952nd Radio Squadron Mobile, and in signals intelligence (SIGNIT), and achieved the rank of Staff Sergeant. Later, back in Roswell, he worked at Roswell Air Force Base as a civilian, mainly at the missile silos. They conducted dangerous testing of equipment with liquid oxygen, where there were a few explosions, but thankfully no one was injured. He was also tasked with troubleshooting the exceptionally problematic concrete blast doors which sealed the missile silos shut. These doors, which operated in pairs and weighed 47 tons each, were designed to slide open in less than 20 seconds in an emergency. Jim worked there during the Cuban missile crisis, and vividly recalled the evening when the crew removed the “dummy” missile and installed the real one, not knowing if they would be alive for the next sunrise. He also did work for the SAC Underground in Nebraska. He was a skilled troubleshooter with a mechanical mind, and was known by the military and all others who knew him as someone trustworthy.

In the late summer of 1963, Jim began noticing a nice young woman at the Furr’s cafeteria in Roswell, NM. He followed her and overheard her conversations for quite some time and asked family members how he might introduce himself — which he did on September 3, 1963. After supper, they walked out together, and Miss Bette Lee Eidenire was surprised to find his car parked next to her Volkswagen Beetle. They then began spending every day together, and were married one month later on October 3. He paid off Bette’s loan on her trailer, and the couple moved the home to quiet, pastoral East Grand Plains near Jim’s mother Mornie. He and Bette enjoyed horseback riding, and Jimmy loved to tell the story of the time his mare Miss. Bucky ran wild and cast him over her head into the manure pile.

Their daughter Suzanne was born in 1967. The family lived in East Grand Plains until 1979, when Jimmy and Bette moved to Hobbs where Jimmy worked for Cabot Oil and Gas Corporation, again as a valued troubleshooter for all of their equipment. Bette was and is a green thumb, loved to garden, and could spend all day outdoors. Suzanne jokes that after Jim built her mom a greenhouse in Hobbs, “I never saw her again!”. The couple also built Jim’s dream workshop - a 16 x 20 structure with two stories, in about 1990.

In early 1997, when Suzanne informed them that they were going to become grandparents, Jimmy and Bette moved to Oregon to be near their daughter. They bought a houseboat on the Multnomah Channel near Scappoose, Oregon, where they enjoyed 28 years of living by the water and boating in their catamaran with grandson Reese Payne, of Portland Oregon.

Jimmy loved loved quiet time at home with his family and taking long walks in nature up the trails in Forest Park with his dog. Once a year he would drive back to his workshop and home in Hobbs for a few months, seeing friends and family in Roswell on the way there. He adored his daughter and grandson and was gentle and kind with all children and animals, although he teased the animals mercilessly. Suzanne remembers how patient her dad was with her as a young girl and later with his grandson Reese and that he taught them many honorable values. Although skeptical of organized religion, Jimmy was always a devoted Christian, and Bible study, spirituality, and meditation were a big part of his life.

Jimmy enjoyed riflery, and was known as an amazing marksman. He was a lifelong conservative, and fully supported the second amendment. On November 22, 2000, he was honored to be named to the National Rifle Association's Millennium Honor Roll. He also very much liked welding, tinkering around with cars, and anything else mechanical. He was known to be able to fix literally anything that was broken. He loved hiking, walking and playing with his dogs, listening to the radio, and drinking coffee with his friends every morning at McDonald's in Scappoose.

Jimmy is survived by his wife Bette Lee, daughter Suzanne, son-in-law Buck, and grandson, Reese, all of Portland, Oregon, brother Tommy of Albuquerque, and nieces and nephews Bobby Bonham (Louetta), Brenda Bonham, and Betty Roberts of Roswell. Also great and great-great nieces and nephews Teresa Villareal (Eli) of Lubbock, Richard Bonham (Dana) of Colorado Springs. Also David Villareal of Lubbock, Matthew Bonham (Agnes) and Hoby Bonham (Amanda) of Roswell, Monica Bonham Sweeney (Scott), Storrie Morris (Joby), Shauna Miller (Matt), Paul Bonham (Sarah), Christopher Bonham (Connie), Phoebe Bonham, Georgia Bonham, Daniel Bonham, Jonathan Bonham, Justin Rogers (Melanie), Ryan Rogers, Chance Bonham, Lyla Bonham, Jeremiah Sweeney, Willow Sweeney, Sage Morris, Seth Morris, Sadie Morris, Payton McCarty, Riley McCarty, Stryker Bonham, and Ava Bonham. He was preceded in death by his parents, his brothers Bill and Bob, sisters-in-law Betty and LaVon, and his nephew Keith Roberts.

The family gathered in Roswell on April 13th for a celebration of life, and wishes to honor his memory with a second celebration in Portland, Oregon at Skyline Memorial Funeral home, 4101 NW Skyline Blvd, Portland, Oregon 97229 on June 7th (Saturday) at 2 pm.

His daughter wishes to extend a special thank you to the staff at OHSU hospital and to the team at Legacy Hospice.