ROGER WILLIAM BONHAM

Roger William Bonham, 86, of Washington Court House, Ohio passed away peacefully on the morning of July 16, 2022.

Roger was born February 3, 1936, on a farm in Lattaville in Ross County, Ohio to Willard M. and Frances Williams Bonham.  He moved to Fayette County when he was two years old and was a 1954 graduate of Wayne School in Good Hope.

He was a crane operator at Armco for 17 years while also farming part-time.  He became a full-time farmer in 1976, and was a pioneer and promoter of no-till cropping in the early 1970’s.

Roger was active in many local farm organizations including OSU Cooperative Extension Service programs such as the Marketing Club and the Agronomy Club, of which he was a past president.  He was past chairman of the Fayette County Agriculture Hall of Fame committee and was inducted into the Fayette County Agriculture Hall of Fame in 2003.  He was a member and past president of the Fayette County Cattlemen’s Association and was recognized as the Distinguished Cattleman of 2002.   For over 20 years, he was active in Corn Growers Associations on the local, state and national levels.  He was past president of the Southwest Ohio Corn Growers Association and in 2005, was inducted into the National Corn Growers Association Recruiter Hall of Fame in Austin, Texas at the Commodity Classic.  He served in the United States Army from 1958-1960 and then in the Ohio National Guard until 1962.

Roger was preceded in death by his parents and a brother, James E. Bonham.

He is survived by his wife, the former Carolyn Ann McCoy, whom he married June 20, 1959; two sons, Doug Bonham (friend Geri Stevens), and Barry (Wendy) Bonham, all of Washington Court House; five grandchildren, Augustus “Gus” (Tiffany Moler) Bonham and Jacob  Bonham, of Washington Court House, Jordan (Casey) Rasmussen of Newman Grove, Nebraska, Elizabeth “Betsy” Bonham of Kettering and Paige (Ryan Schafer) Bonham of Washington Court House; four great grandchildren (Kamdyn, Isabella, Karsyn and Kyra); a sister and brother-in-law, Jo Ann (John) Knedler of State College, PA; sister-in-law, Linda Bonham of Washington Court House and several nieces and nephews.

The funeral will be held at 1 p.m. on Thursday, July 21, 2022, at the Kirkpatrick Funeral Home in Washington Court House with the Rev. Jon R. Silveous, pastor at the Good Hope United Methodist Church, officiating.  Burial will follow in the Good Hope Cemetery.

Friends may call at the funeral home two hours prior to the service on Thursday.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Fayette County Cattlemen’s Association (earmarked for their scholarships), 4731 Bloomingburg-New Holland Road, New Holland, Ohio 43145 and Ohio’s Hospice of Fayette County, 222 North Oakland Avenue, Washington Court House, Ohio 43160.

www.kirkpatrickfuneralhome.com