Lee Ann Bonin, age 57, died at home in Schroeder, Minnesota, on Friday, July 17, 2020.
Born on August 14, 1962, she was the youngest of three daughters born to John and Mary McElevey.
She grew up and attended school in Grand Marais, Minnesota. While in high school, she sang with the Son’s Rays Choir and traveled with them to Washington D.C. and Trinidad. The summer following her junior year in high school, Lee Ann went to Denmark as an AFS student. She graduated from CCHS with the Class of 1980.
She continued her education at Augsburg College and McConnell Travel School. She obtained a business broker’s license and commercial real estate license while living in Crystal, Minnesota.
She married Phil Bonin on October 6, 1984, and together they had four sons. Her love of small children was known by many. She stayed home to raise their family and ran an in-home daycare. In 2000, they moved back to the North Shore. After relocating to Schroeder, she became a Tofte First Responder and a Firefighter for the Schroeder Fire Department. She was employed at the Cross River Café, Satellite Café, Rosie’s Café and the North Shore Market and enjoyed these social interactions.
In 2008, Lee Ann suffered a massive brain aneurysm and miraculously survived due to the support she received from her family and friends.
She is survived by her husband of 35 years, Phil, four sons: Nick, Steve (Afton), Joel and Charlie; three grandchildren: Kyli, Tessa and Carter; two sisters: Janie (Steve) Dahl and Lynn (Craig) Schulte; sister in-law Lorraine (Terry) Jackson and brother-in-law Fred (Betz) Bonin, four nieces and two nephews.
A celebration of her life will be held on Saturday, August 15, 2020. A graveside service will be held at the Schroeder Cemetery on the Cramer Road at 11 a.m. followed by an outdoor picnic lunch at the Tofte Park.
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