Bonnie Gray

Bonnie Ann Gray (LEE Myung-soon)
October 5, 1951 – August 7, 2024

In the late morning hours of August 7th, with her daughter JoAnna by her side, Bonnie Gray passed peacefully from this world, moving on to her glorious eternal home. She reunited with her beloved husband Ed, who had passed just five months prior. Known simply as “Mimi” to her family, Bonnie lived a life of selfless love, fully devoted to God, and to those around her. She was a treasure to those who knew her.

Bonnie was born LEE Myung-soon in the midst of the Korean War. Her biological father was a U.S. serviceman. After almost five years, she was released by her mother (SOHN Ok Jeon) for overseas adoption. Included in her mother’s release statement were the words “for her future.” Through the Holt Adoption Agency she was placed with her American family (Leon & Irene Green) in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota and renamed Bonnie Ann. She enjoyed growing up in Minnesota, where she learned English quickly and excelled in school. She gave her life to Jesus at a young age, and was very involved in church, where she made many friends. She loved to fish, cook and sew, creating many of her own clothing items herself. Being much younger than her adoptive siblings (Larry, Gary & Janet), she spent several winters with her parents in Arizona, where she would eventually attend college.

In the fall of 1970 Bonnie enrolled at Southwestern College in Phoenix, where she met the love of her life, Ed Gray. A year later, at the age of 19, she married Ed, and they started their lives together in Tucson. It wasn’t long before Bonnie missed her hometown, so they moved to Detroit Lakes, where Ed worked in long-haul trucking and Bonnie worked at Norby’s department store. They welcomed their first two sons while in Minnesota — Jared (1973) and Joshua (1974), just 15 months apart. Then they moved back to Tucson, where Jonathan (1979) and JoAnna (1983) joined the family.

In her children’s formative years, Bonnie was a steady presence in the home, while Ed held jobs in automotive service, trucking and insurance. She raised her kids with firm direction and loving support. She was born to be a mom, and she was adored and cherished by her children. She always took an interest in their activities, supporting them through their struggles and rejoicing in their achievements.

She was a fantastic cook, with her many dishes and baked goods regarded as legendary by friends and family. She was never afforded a lifestyle with financial excess, but she had an extraordinary gift of hospitality. She lived to make people feel welcomed and loved, with her warm and inviting home, and the many unforgettable and delicious creations that came from her kitchen. From impromptu gatherings feeding her sons’ football buddies, to traditional holiday spreads with family, everyone felt Bonnie’s love in the way she hosted and served in her home.

Bonnie’s love for people was well-expressed outside the home as well. She worked in transportation, first driving for a childcare center, then for Jim Click Automotive service department. In both jobs, she impacted many lives with her loving and joyful personality, sharing her love for Jesus with everyone in the workplace and on her shuttle. She was involved at church, singing in ensembles and choir, and always looking for ways to serve others. She modeled what it means to follow Jesus and share his life and love with others.

She was a loving and devoted wife to her husband Ed for 52 years of marriage. Through good times and hard times, the love they shared was true and rare, admired by many, but especially by their children. They were truly smitten with each other for the entirety of their years together. In Ed’s final years with ailing health, Bonnie committed herself to faithfully caring for him, forsaking even her own well-being in the process. Her children will forever be in awe of this ultimate act of sacrificial love.

Bonnie’s joy in life was her children. But her promotion to “Mimi” represented a life fulfillment. She absolutely adored her 11 grandchildren, and they all loved her deeply. With ages ranging from 3 to 22, and as far away as Alaska, she cultivated relationships and poured her love into each of them.

From war-torn South Korea, to Minnesota, to Arizona, Bonnie touched many lives in her 72 years on earth. She had a way of making you feel very special to her, and genuinely loved. She was an overcomer, never entangled in the wounds or struggles of her past. She lived with great joy, rooted in the redeeming love of her Savior. She had an ever-present beautiful smile, a great sense of humor, and loved a good laugh. She will be lovingly remembered and greatly missed.

Bonnie was preceded in death by her husband Ed Gray, her parents Leon & Irene Green, her brother Larry Green, her brother-in-law Phil Schons, her nephews Gary Green Jr, Daniel Schons & Matthew Schons. She is survived by her four children and eleven grandchildren — Jed (Valerie) Gray and daughter Josie, Josh (Susan) Gray and their children Lauren and Lane, Jon (Holly) Gray and their children Selah, Abigail, Noah, Caleb, Shepherd and Jonah, and JoAnna (Sean) Kewin and their children Kaitlin and Declan — as well as her brother Gary (Wanda), sister Janet (Phil) and several nieces and nephews. Bonnie will be laid to rest in the Arizona Veterans Memorial Cemetery at Marana with her husband. Her family will host a closed memorial service, officiated by longtime pastor and friend Bill Wright.

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