Muriel "Bonnie" Sellers

Muriel "Bonnie" Sellers

(August 1,1934-November 17, 2023)

Bonnie was born in Minneapolis, MN, to Carol Young-Alwin (Dondi) and Benjamin (Ben) Alwin, and was the youngest of three siblings (Van Alwin, Phyllis Sanders, and Joyce Vereschagin). Dondi was a Medical Illustrator, and Ben was an HVAC Engineer. Bonnie spent her childhood living near Lake Harriet. She shared fond memories of her life there with her siblings and their frequent visits with her grandmother "Mimi" and grandfather "Gaga". Mimi and Gaga were endearing and formative figures for Bonnie, and she cherished them throughout her life. Bonnie attended high school at the Academy of Holy Angels where she was inspired to dedicate her life to Jesus Christ through the example of the nuns who taught and mentored her.

Bonnie was introduced to her husband, Marvin Sellers, by her aunt Delberta Tisdel at Lake Harriet Baptist Church and they were married on September 21, 1957. They raised three boys - Mark, Robert, and Randy (Kent) - in Roseville MN. Bonnie taught art and was an educator who worked with disabled children in the local public schools, while Marvin worked as a Quality Control Engineer at 3M. Her life was filled with raising her children and cherished cats, who were as much family to her as her children. The classical arts, music and literature were a passion throughout Bonnie's life, a passion shared by her mother and siblings, and she had an insatiable intellectual curiosity. Bonnie was deeply committed to her faith in Jesus Christ, frequently studying the Bible and sharing her faith with her friends and family. In this way she was a spiritual bedrock for her family. As an expression of her faith she was dedicated to teaching children in the public schools through Released Time Christian Education for many years.

In 1981 Marvin, Bonnie and Kent moved to Tustin, CA and lived there until Marvin and Bonnie's move to the Linden Ponds Senior Living community in Hingham, MA, in 2006 in order to be closer to her children and grandchildren. Throughout Bonnie's 25 years in Tustin she continued living out her passion for working with disadvantaged children through a volunteer organization she founded as well as her continued involvement in Released Time. Bonnie was continually involved in the church community, including at: Calvary Baptist Church (Roseville, MN), Calvary Church (Santa Ana, CA), Trinity United Presbyterian Church (Santa Ana, CA) and South Shore Baptist Church (Hingham, MA).

Marvin passed away in 2006 after a battle with cancer. Bonnie had many happy years with new friends at Linden Ponds, and then the Scandinavian Living Center in Newton until finally moving to the Elizabeth Seton Residence in 2020.

Bonnie is survived by her sons: Rob and his wife Sharon and their children Bryan and Daniel; Kent and his wife Socheata and their children Eleana and Abigael. She was predeceased by her son Mark and leaves her daughter-in-law Trish and three children her daughter-in-law Freida (deceased) had with Mark: Lydia, Sandy and Cindy and a great-grandson, Leon.

A Memorial Service for Bonnie will be held on Friday, November 24 at 1pm in the funeral home.