Madeline Elizabeth Bond

Madeline Elizabeth Bond died peacefully in Lakeway, Texas on March 10, 2016. She was born in Philadelphia, PA on December 29, 1920 of parents William Alfred Schwartz and Elizabeth Rebecca (Fagely) Schwartz. After living in various places in southern NJ, her family settled in W. Collingswood, NJ where she graduated from Collingswood High School, class of 1938. She played field hockey in high school and was a member of the NJ State Championship team in her senior year. In addition, she was crowned Miss Collingswood in 1938. After graduation she worked in a "five and dime" where she scooped ice cream but was later transferred to the lamp section ("Do you know how hard it is to wrap a lampshade?"). She also worked in a photo developing lab and eventually at Bell Telephone.

She loved roller skating and was a part of a roller club that traveled to various rinks in NJ and PA. After skating one night, another member of the club, Errol Quinby Bond asked to take her home. She accepted and the romance began. They were married on January 30, 1943 at her home. Their first apartment was in Camden, NJ and in 1945 they started their own family with two boys, first Errol, Jr and then Ronald, two years apart. After a move to Upper Darby, PA, their third child, a girl, Dorrece, was born. In 1955, they moved to Haddonfield, NJ where they settled to raise their children. While Madeline did not work outside of the home, she took in contract typing to be able to work around her children's schedules. Consequently, she rarely missed a swim meet, wrestling match, diving meet, field hockey game, track meet, softball game or Little League baseball game. She volunteered as Cub Scout den mother and managed the Little League concession stand. In 1971 her youngest son Ron's plane went down in Laos during the Viet Nam War and he was not found.

In 1972, Madeline and Errol moved to Fullerton in Southern California where they lived for over 30 years until he passed away in 2004. In California they met others who shared a passion to learn the fate of service members lost in Viet Nam and they became tireless advocates for the POW/MIA issue for many years. They went to flag raisings and vigils, manned booths at fairs, and marched in parades. Madeline never gave up hope that somewhere, sometime her son would return home. Even as recent as two years ago, she offered a POW/MIA flag to the City of Lakeway, a gesture which was the motivation for a ceremony on National POW/MIA Recognition Day to honor the missing-in-action. And her mere presence in her new home at Brookdale Senior Living was the reason for a POW/MIA flag to be installed on their flagpole on Veteran's Day last year. She loved to knit and crochet, offering her creations to both family and friends, but also giving numerous baby blankets to hospital neo-natal care departments and red, white and blue afghans to organizations serving wounded veterans.

She grew up as the only girl in a family of boys. As a result, she quickly learned to love sports. She was a huge football fan, looked forward to the March Madness every year, watched bowling, golf and tennis, but her biggest love was the Little League World Series in August.

She was a strong, loyal, loving and generous woman who lived life on her own terms. She will be greatly missed.

She is survived by daughter Dori and son-in-law Ed LeBlanc of Lakeway, TX, grandchildren Kathryn LeBlanc, Evan LeBlanc, Quin (Dana) Bond, and Faith (Brian) Sutton, great grandchildren Savannah Bond, Tyler Bond, Patrick Sutton and Libby Sutton and daughter-in-law Hope Bond. She is also survived by her brothers Richard (Janet) Schwartz and Herbert (Bernice) Schwartz and sisters-in-law Hazel Schwartz, Mildred Schwartz, and Inge Schwartz. She is predeceased by her husband Errol Q. Bond, Sr., her sons Errol Q. Bond, Jr. and Capt Ronald L. Bond, brothers William Schwartz, Howard Schwartz and Robert Schwartz and her parents.

Remembrance donations can be made to:

American Cancer Society's Relay for Life Lake Travis http://relay.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RFLCY16PL?fr_id=72400&pg=entry

or USO https://www.uso.org/donate