Bonnie Mae Thorn

Bonnie was born on May 14, in Woden Iowa, the youngest of two children, to the late Roy and Nellie Thorn Sr., in the upstairs living quarters of the Rock Island Depot where the family resided and where her father worked as Station Manager and Telegrapher. Her early train travel, with her family to California helped inspire her love of travel and adventure.

Growing up in Northern Iowa, her parents always instilled hard work and offered their children opportunities in education, travel, giving back, helping others, and life-learning experiences that she would carry on for the rest of her life.

While attending School in Woden she participated in many school activities including plays and musicals. Upon graduating from Woden High School at 17 years of age, she traveled some before moving to Des Moines, to attend AIB College of Business. Throughout the rest of her life, she furthered her education, by attending night schools, correspondence, seminars, and home study courses.

After she graduated from AIB, in 1951, she was hired as Lester Bookey’s Executive Secretary at the Bookey Packing Company, in Des Moines, Iowa. She worked closely with Mr. Bookey during the sale of the company to the Swift Company in 1969 and retained her position with the Swift Company until the plant closed in 1979. She was then hired by Morton Bookey, of the Iowa-Phoenix Corporation (a private real estate investment firm) through 1984. Bonnie would always remark how much she learned from Lester and Morton Bookey, about business, investing, income properties, and philanthropic giving.

Starting in 1985 until her retirement in 2019, she worked as a Legal Secretary for the Polk County Attorney, in Des Moines, Iowa. She looked forward to getting up and going to work and enjoyed her co-workers, and being part of the team.

She was a member of the Pilot’s Club International, the Polk County Board of Adjustment, and former secretary on the Board of Elizabeth Ahern School for the Deaf. She was very active in local, state, and national political issues and campaigns.

Bonnie had a lifelong love of travel and adventure and was fortunate to have traveled the globe, seeing sites, meeting new people, and trying different cuisines. Just four years ago she was scheduled to spend two weeks in India and Dubai, before being diagnosed with health issues.

She enjoyed skiing from Colorado to the Swiss Alps. Walking was her passion; she would walk up to five miles a day, being recognized as that “Blonde Woman”, walking from Downtown to her home. Other interests include her income properties, gardening, Des Moines Botanical Gardens, finding bargains at thrift stores, auctions and garage sales, classic cars, road rallies and classic car shows, Hawkeye Classic Thunderbird Club, attending and helping at the Iowa State Fair, going to the Chicago Cubs games, or watching, or listening to the games, even participating in the Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa-RAGBRAI, IPR Radio, PBS Television, volunteering and supporting multiple non-profit organizations, helping with social and environmental issues, and being a member of St. John’s Lutheran Church. Most of all, she cherished her family, her friends, her independence, and working in her yard.

Bonnie was preceded in death by her parents and her older brother Roy W. Thorn Jr.

She is survived by one niece and three nephews; Donald J. Thorn, of Joplin, MO, Pamala J. Carrier and husband Dennis, of Joplin, MO, Roy W. Thorn III and wife Kendra, of Kansas City, MO, Mike R. Thorn and wife Lee Ann, of Bartlesville, OK, and five great nieces and three great nephews; Stacy Provenzano and husband Joshua, of Duncan, OK, Brandi Heinz and husband Michael, of Edgewater, MD, Tiffney Testerman and husband Nicholas, of Joplin, MO, Lindsay Boyett and husband Chasten, of Oklahoma City, OK, Ryan Thorn, of New York City, NY, Mark Thorn, of Pryor, OK, Craig Thorn, of Bartlesville, OK, Megan Norman and husband Joey, of Kansas City, MO.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Arbor Day Foundation or the St. John’s Lutheran Church Foundation. Funeral arrangements are being entrusted to McLaren’s Resthaven Chapel of West Des Moines, Iowa.