Bonnie Heimbuch

1929 - 2019

Bonnie Heimbuch, age 89, passed away at Peninsula Community Hospital in Soldotna, Alaska, on April 16, 2019, after suffering a heart attack.
Born in Nemaha, Neb., Bonnie and husband Floyd came to Alaska as newlyweds in 1949. They initially taught school in the village of Unalakleet and then at Alaska Native Services in Anchorage, Alaska. Later, Bonnie taught for the Anchorage School District.
In 1961, Bonnie, Floyd and their five children homesteaded in Willow, Alaska. She and Floyd made the 180-mile roundtrip commute to their jobs in Anchorage, returning in the evening to their two-room cabin with no electricity or running water. After proving up on the homestead and moving back to Anchorage, they began commercial salmon fishing in Cook Inlet during the summer hiatus from their school district jobs. Bonnie held her own with Floyd, fishing with him until the children were old enough to take over. They left Alaska briefly on several occasions to pursue their graduate degrees.
Bonnie was awarded a Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of Texas in Austin. She then returned with Floyd to Alaska, eventually taking up residence in Soldotna, where she taught math at the University of Alaska.
Following the premature death of their daughter Connie in 1988, they joined the Peace Corp and spent time teaching in the Philippines. Bonnie was an active member of the Church of Christ and a frequent volunteer at the Food Bank in Soldotna. She was also a volunteer on the Suicide Prevention Hotline.
Bonnie was preceded in death by her parents, Barney and Zola Aufenkamp; three of her four brothers, Don, Ernie and Alan; and two of her five children: son, Douglas; and daughter, Connie.
She is survived by her husband, Floyd; brother, Dell; sons, Mike, Karl and Paul; daughters-in-law, Suzie Kendrick and Annie Heimbuch; grandchildren, Hannah, Ivan, Ben and Matt; and great-grandchild, Nick; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Services will be held at the Church of Christ, 41910 Sterling Highway in Soldotna. The service will begin at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 2, 2019, and will be followed by a potluck meal. An interment ceremony at the family burial plot in Anchorage will be announced at a later date.