Leander A. "Lee" Jonas

My Grandpa Jonas died on August 31, 1974, in St. Martin, Minnesota. After his funeral, my dad flew back to California and brought with him his mom, my Grandma Jonas. Dad and his siblings decided it best to have Grandma away from St. Martin while they sold the family farm and settled the estate, intending to return Grandma to Minnesota when all was sorted out. The time that Grandma Jonas spent with us (it was originally intended to be about 6 weeks, it ended up being 6 months ) was one of the best times of my life. Having moved to California from Minnesota when I was three years old, I had very limited access to my maternal or paternal grandparents, so this was an incredible gift in my eyes.
There was one similarity with my dad, his siblings and his father: they were all, for the most part, very quiet, almost sneaky and perhaps even private. Getting information about my dad from my dad was like pulling teeth, so I saw this as a golden opportunity to get info from my grandma who already adored me! So, I, at approximately 15 years of age, started questioning my grandma about my dad's childhood.
Leander Anthony Jonas was born on a stormy and snowy morning of February 4, 1930, in St. Martin, Minnesota, 6:30 a.m. to be precise. He was the sixth child born to Joseph and Olivia Jonas. His siblings were Leo, Clarence, Marie, Dorothy, Bernie, Margie, LeRoy and Ronnie. They lived in a tiny house in St. Martin, with one small bedroom upstairs for the boys and one small bedroom upstairs for the girls. And when I say "upstairs," you'd better duck, or you'd crack your noggin on the ceiling! His childhood was very much like most. At an early age, dad went to work with his dad on handyman or carpentry projects; he got into trouble hiding in a igloo made of tumbleweeds and covered with snow where he and his brothers Clarence and Leo would pelt the postman on his daily rounds. The family fought to survive just like so many did; Grandma planted and harvested from a homegrown garden which was huge and trust me, nothing was wasted from that garden. She'd send them down to the corner bar, "Pung's Bar," with a coffee can for beer which had grease around the rim this kept the foam down, grandma said They belonged to the little Catholic church in St. Martin, where my dad received his sacraments of Baptism, First Communion and Confirmation.
In 1948 my dad spied for the first time the most beautiful girl in the world (my description, not my dad's particularly haha) and as my mom recounted it, he knew then that he would marry her. Her name was Laura Ann Kuhl. She lived in a neighboring community of Farming, Minnesota, the daughter of John B. and Christine Kuhl. They saw each other just once at a dance that night and would not see each other again until three years later when my mom was 16 years old. In 1951 dad enlisted in the Navy and remained on post until he was honorably discharged in 1954. The Barber of the ship and the lead musician of the guitar band. It wasn't until several years later, 1956 to be exact, that they would be married at St. Catherine's Catholic Church in Farming, Minnesota and begin a beautiful life together.
Shortly after they married, around 1961, my dad came home from work one day in construction and asked my mom: "Hey, lover how'd you like to move to California?" My mom's answer didn't even take a second to formulate. "When do we leave," she replied. This infamous day was, I believe, around March of 1961. In July, with a handmade storage container attached to the roof of their 1950's Pontiac, they began the trip out west with my older sister, myself, and my younger brother "in the oven."
We began our California adventure in Fresno, California in a small, rented house that my parents leased for a year while they were looking for a house to buy. Remember, in those days, you could buy a house for about half what a car costs these days. My mom hated that house. There was some kind of stain or smell in the flooring that her incredible hours of scrubbing would not get clean, so seven months into the lease, they moved to our first real home at 4614 East Madison in Fresno. In keeping with "Jonas tradition," our first home was a two bedroom, one bath home with mom and dad in one bedroom and all the kids in the other bedroom, separated by a divider that my dad built. All the curtains and drapes in the house were made by my mom. All of us kids learned the beginnings of a stellar work ethic in that house because we scrubbed, weeded and cleaned like nobody's business. Saturday nights were our favorite: baths for all, a wonderful family dinner and Lawrence Welk for the family after the dishes were done. During those wonderful years, my little sister was born and my littlest brother "in the oven" in 1967. In 1968, shortly after the birth of the fifth child, we moved to our new farm in Sanger, California to live on a 2-acre parcel of land in a house that my dad had built from the ground up for us. It was a palace. And it was there that we all really learned what hard work was all about! My dad insisted that everything outside be kept in a pristine manner, and my mom was equally insistent that the inside was always immaculate. Unfortunately, during that time, the realization of what things cost caught up with my dad and he began drinking which almost cost us everything. Luckily, God was (as He always was) with us, and my dad entered a treatment program, my mom went to work full time, went to college full time and raised 5 children and I went to High School part time and worked full time myself. Between mom and me we got debts paid and kept things afloat while dad was away for a year. Upon his return, he and mom had some rebuilding of their own to do; I graduated from High School early and headed off to College in Fresno. Over time, the girls got married to their first husbands and in 1985 mom and dad bought the Bartlett Pear Homestead in Santa Cruz County; sold the farm and moved to the coast to begin a new chapter together, as Innkeepers in the Bed and Breakfast industry. This was intended to be their "retirement," but as mom recounted it, she never worked so hard in her life! They ran an all too successful Bed and Breakfast: "Chateau Des Fleurs" until 2003 when they moved to begin their real retirement in Oakhurst, California. At the end of 2007, after many phone calls between my mom and myself talking about how difficult it was becoming to manage the necessary work of maintaining the inside and the outside of the property in Oakhurst, I arrived in December to spend Christmas and my 50th birthday with my folks and ended up spending two months in the hospital, diagnosed with Congestive heart failure. Unconscious for two months, when I came to, the doctor instructed me to live with someone for at least a year while I slowly recuperated and strengthened my heart and lungs. Where I would live was a no-brainer, as far as my mom was concerned. And so, there began what was to be the most fun and entertaining and meaningful part of my life. It was then that my dad and I began to build a relationship that we never got to build before. Working the property, bowling, working in the shop, working on the cars together all became regular functions. It was also during this time that my mom's health began to steadily decline, and my dad began slowing down measurably. From then until now, it was all about the three of us: not always knowing if we were playing the parts of the Three Musketeers or the Three Stooges. The house was always filled with activity; holidays, decorations gone wild, cooking gone over the top. So much laughter and fun.
God called mom home to Himself on December 10, 2019. Dad and I were both completely and severely crushed beyond belief. Dad was lost and I didn't know how I would carry on without our best girl. I sometimes wonder if God chose to take mom to Himself first because He wanted more time for dad and me to continue to build and solidify our relationship. It was a trying and desperate time for both of us, until God called Dad home to Himself on Tuesday, June 3, 2025 at 8:55 a.m. But there were also stories told, laughs enjoyed, and many, many, many times around the table with friends enjoying home cooked food, good conversation, and good life.
In Heaven to greet Dad upon his arrival were his dad on August 31, 1974; his mom on July 29, 1975, his brothers Leo, Clarence and Ronnie in 2006, 2016 and 2009 respectively; his sisters Marie, Dorothy, Bernie and Margie in 2014, 2000, 2013, and 2023 respectively. Dad joins my beautiful mom who was called home to God on December 10, 2019. His brother LeRoy will continue to remember his older brother fondly until they meet again in Heaven.
Dad is survived by his five children: four of whom took different paths that did not include their parents or oldest brother. Dad's eldest son, Kevin, remains to carry on the traditions taught and enjoyed. Kevin will be receiving friends on Saturday, June 28th between 10 am and 4 pm with Military Honors being rendered to him at 12:30 p.m. Come join us, share stories, laughter and good food,
"May the angels lead him to Paradise. May the Martyrs come to welcome him and take him to the Holy City, the New and Eternal Jerusalem."
God bless us all, and God Bless the United States of America.
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