1976
Liberty
2008
Liberty Bonney
June 23, 1976 — June 23, 2008
Liberty Erin Bonney passed away on June 23, 2008, surrounded by her family, finally at rest after a lengthy battle with cancer. It was her 32nd birthday.
A lifelong resident of the Kansas City area, Liberty attended St. Francis Xavier, Notre Dame de Sion, and Bishop Hogan before graduating from Shawnee Mission South High School. Liberty's life was marked by her devotion to learning and education. Throughout her high school and early college years she was active in a Boy Scout Explorer post whose mission was to bring Catholic youth together for an ecumenical retreat called the "Extravaganza." This fed her passion for teaching, and upon graduation from KU with a BA in Art History, she joined the Teaching Fellows program and earned her MA in Elementary Education. Liberty became an extraordinary teacher whose love of children and education was evident in the lives of all she touched. After five years at Gladstone Academy with the KCMSD, she joined a charter school new to the KC area, KIPP Endeavor Academy. For Liberty, this was a dream come true. Her placement at KIPP gave her the opportunity to work with an extraordinary group of educators to build a school that would serve students who needed and deserved an exceptional educational experience. Books and literature were always her passion, and it brought her great joy to open a child's eyes and mind to the education and adventure that books could provide. In her final letter to her family, Liberty wrote, "Remember me, but remember the happy things. Miss me, but not so much it hurts. I love you so much. I'll always be there loving you."
She is survived by her parents, George and Ellen of Overland Park, Kan.; sister, Emily of Overland Park; and sister, Melanie of Lawrence, Kan.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, June 28, at 11 a.m. at St. Francis Xavier Church, 52nd and Troost, KCMO.
In lieu of flowers, Liberty's family asks that donations be made to the Plaza Branch of the Kansas City Library or to the Sarcoma Foundation of America, 9884 Main St., PO Box 458, Damascus, MD 20872 (www.curesarcoma.org). A reception will follow the Mass.
A lifelong resident of the Kansas City area, Liberty attended St. Francis Xavier, Notre Dame de Sion, and Bishop Hogan before graduating from Shawnee Mission South High School. Liberty's life was marked by her devotion to learning and education. Throughout her high school and early college years she was active in a Boy Scout Explorer post whose mission was to bring Catholic youth together for an ecumenical retreat called the "Extravaganza." This fed her passion for teaching, and upon graduation from KU with a BA in Art History, she joined the Teaching Fellows program and earned her MA in Elementary Education. Liberty became an extraordinary teacher whose love of children and education was evident in the lives of all she touched. After five years at Gladstone Academy with the KCMSD, she joined a charter school new to the KC area, KIPP Endeavor Academy. For Liberty, this was a dream come true. Her placement at KIPP gave her the opportunity to work with an extraordinary group of educators to build a school that would serve students who needed and deserved an exceptional educational experience. Books and literature were always her passion, and it brought her great joy to open a child's eyes and mind to the education and adventure that books could provide. In her final letter to her family, Liberty wrote, "Remember me, but remember the happy things. Miss me, but not so much it hurts. I love you so much. I'll always be there loving you."
She is survived by her parents, George and Ellen of Overland Park, Kan.; sister, Emily of Overland Park; and sister, Melanie of Lawrence, Kan.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, June 28, at 11 a.m. at St. Francis Xavier Church, 52nd and Troost, KCMO.
In lieu of flowers, Liberty's family asks that donations be made to the Plaza Branch of the Kansas City Library or to the Sarcoma Foundation of America, 9884 Main St., PO Box 458, Damascus, MD 20872 (www.curesarcoma.org). A reception will follow the Mass.
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