Ed Bonham, Lot 127

Our community is saddened by the recent loss of  Ed Bonham, Lot #127, who died in Quartzsite, AZ on March 3, 2020. The long-time musician is survived by his wife, Ruby Bonham. Ed and Ruby have been members since 2014. (Ed in 2014, Ruby in 2019). Ed provided hours of entertainment wherever he traveled with his wonderful musical talent.

The members of Timber Valley extend our condolences to Ruby and the family.  Please contribute any stories or memories you have of Ed in the comments below.

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6 Responses to Ed Bonham, Lot 127

  1. Fred and Rita says:

    Ruby,Ed will be missed. He brought us great pleasure and we loved him and will miss him.

  2. Kathy Perry says:

    Ruby and family, I am so very sorry for your loss. His music will live on in our hearts. It was such a blessing to play with you both and he did teach me a lot in the short time in the short time I was able to share with you both.

  3. Ed was the consummate entertainer. He was always looking for the next person to pull into his merry band of minstrels. His and Ruby’s jam sessions will be greatly missed. Thank you for your many shared tunes and memories.

  4. NATHAN BROWN says:

    I will miss Ed Bonham as a friend and musical associate.

  5. Dick Shanahan says:

    By Jackie Deal

    Music was his world. Music was his life. It was his love. He loved the musicians he played with and the audiences he played for. And they loved him back. Ed Bonham’s death leaves a big hole in the fabric of Quartzsite, Arizona’s and Sutherlin, regon’s music world.
    For almost 15 years he was “front man” for “The Travelers” who played in Arizona and other Western states. In Quartzsite he played weekly at the Senior Center and once a month at the Quartzsite Improvement Association Civic center. Over a hundred dancers ringed the hall when Ed sang his signature song “Why Me Lord?” In Sutherlin for four years “Ed, Ruby and Friends “played for birthdays and special events.
    February 4 th he refused hospitalization at the Lake Havasu Hospital and returned to Quartzsite to play his evening dance. No one knew that he was in pain and not feeling good. The next day he broke out with very painful shingles. March 1 st he died in the hospital at Lake Havasu, a wonderful man and a great talent lost to the world.
    His dearly beloved wife, Ruby, plans a “Celebration of Ed’s Life” in Quartzsite when all the musician snowbirds return next season. Yes, Ed loved all the ladies but he loved his wife Ruby best. Ed, we all miss you, now and forever.

  6. Thom Hoch says:

    by Rick DeYoung…

    Ed Bonham was not only a talented musician, loved by all the ladies (as Jackie Deal testifies) and musicians with whom he played, he was a great guy and good friend to those of us Timber Valley male residents who got to know him. He was a neighbor of mine for a short time and I learned first hand that he was also an entertaining story teller.
    Ed regaled me, and a few other guys who dropped by to listen, with his story about rescuing his boat, LITTLE TOOT, from a canyon off U.S. 90 (now I-80) in the Arizona-California desert, patching it in many places and then risking life and limb to go fishing and crabbing in it in the Pacific Ocean. We gathered around, listening as he prepared it for a July 2018 day of boating on Cooper Creek Reservoir.
    When the day finally came, he good naturedly encouraged our laughter when LITTLE TOOT took on water as he launched it, because Skipper Ed had left the hull plugs hanging on his shed in Timber Valley. He handled the situation deftly, speeding around in a tight circle and got the boat back onto the trailer before it sank. And he was ready to go, again in 2019.
    In 2019 Ed answered my distress call for some musical entertainment for Chapter 9’s Timber Valley Rally, which he and Ruby sandwiched in between buying a trailer and moving into it. Ed patiently and tactfully auditioned several novice vocalists to put on a show and even led group sing-alongs from a song book he’d never seen before! Ed was the consummate performer and as good natured a man as I’ve ever met. I will truly miss Ed and I hope to join in whatever celebration of his life happens. Rick De Young 184

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