Bonnie Cecil (Bullard) Oakes, 88, passed away from pneumonia on November 15, 2021, at Great Falls Clinic Hospital, in Great Falls, MT with family at her side. Bonnie was born in 1933 in Three Rivers, Michigan at home on the kitchen table!
After graduating high school, Bonnie married Vernon Eugene Shepherd Sr. They had a son, Stephen Michael Oakes, and two daughters, Deborah Jean and Naomi LaVerne. They lived in Kalkaska, MI and later divorced. Bonnie and her kids moved to Philadelphia with her parents for a few years before moving back to Michigan where she lived until 1975.
While living in Michigan Bonnie met and fell in love Donald “Don” Marvin Oakes Sr. They married in 1963. Don had 5 children from a previous marriage, Donald Marvin Jr., Robert Earl, Daniel David, Theresa Louise, and Karen Jean. Bonnie and Don had a daughter together, Cora Mary. Together they raised Bonnie’s 3 children and the child they had together full time and Don’s 5 children part-time (as often as they could) with the amazing love they shared. Bonnie considered all 9 children hers, she loved them all the same.
Bonnie and Don moved to Montana in 1975, and lived there the rest of their lives. Bonnie and Don both cherished spending time with family and friends. Bonnie and Don were always up for an adventure! Whether it was camping in the mountains and sleeping on the hard ground, going to the Grand Ol’ Opry, or posing with lions and riding on an elephant for pictures at the fair, they shared an adventurous spirit.
In the late 50’s and early 60’s while living in Philadelphia Bonnie went to school and became a licensed beautician. She owned and worked at her beauty shop until she moved back to Michigan. While attending school there, she worked as a long-distance telephone operator. While living in Michigan in the 60’s and 70’s, she was employed as an assembly line worker in a factory. After moving to Montana in 1975, Bonnie was employed at the Cascade County Nursing Home as a Nursing Assistant and beautician for many years before retiring in 1993, when the facility was sold.
To read the complete obituary and share condolences, visit the Schnider Funeral Home website.
