Bonna B. Starkey

Bonna Bethane (Preston) Starkey, 94, of Powell, OH passed away peacefully on July 18, 2019. Bonna was born on March 6, 1925 near Laurel, Nebraska, to Russell and Angie Preston. She grew up on a farm near Wayne, Nebraska during the Great Depression and World War II. A 1942 graduate of Wayne City High School, Bonna attended Wayne State Teachers College for two years, taught for a year in Climbing Hill, Iowa, and then earned her Bachelor of Sciences degree from Iowa State College in Ames, Iowa. She went on to earn her Master’s degree in Dietetics from The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, where she met her future husband, Walter, while serving in the school’s hospital cafeteria. After graduate school, Bonna worked at Fairview Park Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio as a therapeutic dietitian for one year. She and Walter were united in marriage December 17, 1949, and she returned with him to Columbus, working for two years at OSU. Bonna trusted in Christ for salvation in the 1940s and became a lifelong student of His Word. She was a long time member of Riverside Bible Church in Worthington, Ohio, where she joyfully served with family and friends until her passing. Bonna was a devoted wife and a loving mother and grandmother. She had an adventurous, can-do spirit and a heart that loved to serve. She joined Walter as a trailblazer of off-grid camping in the Rocky Mountains starting in the early 1950s, and enjoyed boating on Lake Erie and in Florida during their retirement. She was certified by the Ohio Power Squadron in navigation and power boating skills. She was preceded in death by her husband of 65 years, Walter L. Starkey, her parents Russell and Angie Preston of Nebraska and brothers, Leland Preston of Ohio and Quentin Preston of Iowa. Bonna is survived by sons David H. Starkey (Vicki) of Powell, Ohio and John M. Starkey (Carolyn) of West Lafayette, Indiana; grandchildren Peter (Kim) Starkey, Philip (Delon) Starkey, Anna (Johnny) Lim, Daniel (Emma) Starkey, Laura Starkey, Benjamin (Brittiany) Starkey, Rebecca Starkey and Eliana Starkey; 13 great-grandchildren, her younger brother Merlin Pres-ton of Arizona, and many nieces and nephews. Family will receive friends Friday July 26, 2019 from 4:00 - 7:00pm at Rutherford Funeral Home, 450 W. Olentangy St., Powell, Ohio followed by a private burial in Oller Cemetery, Delaware, Ohio. A Memorial Service for Bonna will be held on August 3, 2019 at 10 a.m. at Riverside Bible Church, 5330 Olentangy River Road, Columbus, Ohio. David Crawford, officiating. All are welcome. Contributions in Bonna’s memory may be made to JosiahVenture, a non-profit, faith-based ministry serving youth in Central and Eastern Europe. Go to www.josiahventure.com and click on “Give.”

Bonna B. Starkey

March 6, 1925 - July 18, 2019