Bonda "Bonnie" O'Gara

Bonda “Bonnie” O’Gara, 87, of Indianapolis, passed away January 4, 2021, due to Alzheimer’s disease. She was born on September 6, 1933 in Dunham, KY, to William Thornton Collins and Kate Hollfield Collins, who preceded her in death.

Bonnie met her future husband, Joseph P. O’Gara, during a square dance at the Big Red Barn in Whiteland, IN. The couple loved to dance, especially Joe who was an expert square dancer.

Bonnie and Joe married on February 7, 1959 in Indianapolis, IN. They were married for 38 years, until Joe’s passing in June 1997. Bonnie and Joe had two children, Joseph Anthony and Andrea Kathryn.

The Alzheimer’s that had taken over Bonnie’s mind several years ago won its battle. But it did not take the soul, spunk, spirit or love for family away from the lady from Dunham, KY.

Bonnie’s older sister, Stella, passed away two days before her, a victim of COVID-19 and dementia. For the last seven months of their lives, Bonnie and Stella lived in the same nursing facility, Castleton Health Care. The nurses there often saw the sisters together in the dining room or break areas, tight as two peas in a pod.

Bonnie had a knack, and love, of doing the laundry and other such work around the house. It was hard to get Bonnie to sit down and rest for very long, unless her soaps were on.

The first and foremost thing in Bonnie’s life was her family. Bonnie was a mom to all of them. Bonnie looked  forward to the Christmas holidays, a time when she would help put up the tree, put the decorations on it, and set up her Christmas village and Nativity scenes.

Bonnie O’Gara is survived by her son and daughter; her sister, Patsy Hall; three grandchildren, Belinda (Austin) Sanders, Emily (Ryan) Harris and Jordan Crites; three great-grandchildren, Raelyn, Charlotte and MacKenzie; as well as numerous nephews and nieces. She also survived by her daughter-in-law Sheri Bell-O’Gara. In addition to her husband and sister, Bonnie is also preceded in death by her brother Timothy Collins.

There will be no service. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association at http://www.alz.org.

Mom is finally able to close her eyes and rest.

We’ll take it from here Mom. We love and miss you very much.