Kenneth Bonham

The family of Kenneth Bonham will celebrate his life of 85 years at 11:00 am on Friday, July 31, 2020, at Lake Ridge Chapel.  The family will host a time of fellowship and remembrance from 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm on Thursday, July 30, 2020, at Lake Ridge Chapel and Memorial Designers.  He passed away on Saturday, July 25, 2020.  In support of the health of his family, face coverings are mandatory while attending the service and visitation.  The service will be live-streamed and be available for thirty days on this page.  You are encouraged to sign the virtual guestbook and share memories and expressions of sympathy by selecting the icon.  A graveside gathering will take place at Galveston Memorial Park in Hitchcock, TX, on August 8, 2020, at 11:00 am.Kenneth Bonham was born on October 22, 1934, to Kenneth and Esther Bonham in Nagpur, India, where his father served as a medical missionary.  He spent his childhood attending Woodstock School in India, where he made lifelong friends.  Attending class reunions across the U.S. throughout the years were some of his favorite memories.When Kenneth left India, he made his home in Enid, Oklahoma, where he attended Phillips University and received his Bachelor’s of Oratory in English.  He soon began his lifelong career as a journalist and photographer.  While working at the local newspaper in Enid, he met his love, a fellow journalist, Carolyn Liming.  They were married on May 29, 1960, in Enid at the First United Methodist Church.Kenneth continued his newspaper career in Lawton and Oklahoma City, OK before joining the staff of the American Medical Association in Chicago in the late 1960s.  He then began his federal career as the head of the news media branch at Scott Air Force Base near O’Fallon, IL.  In 1971, the Bonham family moved to LaMarque, TX, where Kenneth began a 28-year career at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Galveston.  At the time of his retirement in 1999, he had served as Chief Public Affairs Officer for the district since 1982.  Throughout his career, photography was his passion and hobby, often moonlighting on the weekends with wedding and prom photography assignments.Between 1961 and 1965, he and Carolyn had three children.  He instilled family values and a strong work ethic with them.  He never missed attending his kids’ school activities or taking time out every summer for a vacation with the pop-up trailer.  Thanks to him, his family has many memories of trips across the U.S.Kenneth relocated to Lubbock in 2012 when his diagnosis with Parkinson’s Disease had progressed.  His family would like to thank the staff of Mackenzie Place and Hospice of Lubbock, who treated him like family in his last years.Survivors include his three children, Kenny Bonham and wife, Tamara, Jean Ann Slaughter, and Susan Bonham; one granddaughter, Kendall Slaughter; two brothers, Dr. Robert John Bonham, and wife, Dr. Suzanne Jonas, and Dr. David W. Bonham and wife, Gretchen; one niece, Shuli, and husband Tom Pulling, their children Veronica and Davey; and one nephew, Gabe Bonham.He was preceded in death by his parents, Kenneth and Esther Bonham, and wife, Carolyn Bonham.