Dressed in black, my wife and I stepped inside Eckols Funeral Home in Kenedy Saturday afternoon. We were there to attend the memorial service for a dear friend.

I looked up and saw the words Sergeant Bonnie Alonzo written on several certificates of commendation that she received during her years as a police officer with the Houston Police Department.

Although we knew Bonnie for many years, neither of us knew that she once worked as a police officer. We knew that her husband, A. C., retired from the Houston Police Department and he continues to work in law-enforcement for the Karnes County Sheriff’s Office, but we had no idea that Bonnie also was a police officer.

Bonnie never mentioned her career as a police officer, and I suppose that’s because she rarely talked about herself. She was always busy trying to find out more about others, and especially how she could help others.

Bonnie worked in Karnes County as a real estate agent, but her work went far, far beyond that. Bonnie and A. C. chose to make Karnes County their home when they moved here after retiring from careers in the Houston Police Department. And when they arrived, they immediately became very involved in numerous community efforts. No one worked harder on the Karnes County Sesquicentennial Celebration than Bonnie and A. C. – and this special event was a tremendous success. They became closely involved with the Rotary Clubs and Chambers of Commerce and many other community events and organizations – far too numerous to list.

Bonnie and A. C. cared deeply for their new hometown and they worked hard to make it a better place. Bonnie had a tremendous amount of energy and enthusiasm and she threw herself into every new venture with such a positive and cheerful spirit. She was always ready, eager and willing to help – anyone – anytime. She never stood on the sidelines – she was always in the game and she always helped the team win.

Bonnie didn’t start a real estate business because she was looking for extra income. She saw it as way to be of service to the people of Karnes County. She knew that this was a service that could help Karnes County grow and prosper by bringing new people to our community and also could also help the people who live here by helping them find housing that they need. I could tell that she got into real estate because she genuinely wanted to help people and help the community. She wanted to make Karnes County a better place and she worked so hard to make it a better place.

Although we know she is in a much better place, and we will see her again one bright shining day, she will be sorely and deeply missed.

Several people spoke about Bonnie at the memorial service. I thought about standing up to talk, but I could not have said it better than the folks who stood and shared their memories of Bonnie.

It was a beautiful service.

Midway through the service, I heard the rain falling on the roof of the funeral home and I thought about how the rain is so sorely needed in this community right now. I couldn’t help but think that Bonnie had a hand in sending these rains. She knew how badly we needed the rain and knowing Bonnie, upon her arrival up there, she would have done everything she could to make sure we got some.

Rain is a blessing only truly appreciated when it goes away.

Sometimes you don’t really appreciate what you have until it’s gone.

Bonnie was a blessing for this community and her absence will be felt by so many people.

When it began to rain, the words of a song by Buddy Jewell came into my head as I thought about and remembered Bonnie Alonzo:

editor@thecountywide.com