Bonnie Sue Fallis Babcock was born October 5, 1934 in Calvin, Arkansas (near Alicia) and passed away on June 26, 2024 in Laguna Hills, California. She was 89 years old.

Born to William Monroe Fallis and Lura Montgomery, Bonnie was the seventh of nine children and the last surviving member of her immediate family.

Bonnie grew up during the heart of the Great Depression in the Deep South surrounded by cotton fields. As the daughter of Scotch-Irish sharecroppers, she attended a two-room schoolhouse (Williams).  During her 7th grade year, she moved from Calvin to Evergreen where she attended both 7th and 8th grades before attending and graduating from Walnut Ridge High School. Many of her relatives are buried at the Calvin Crossing Cemetery. Surnames include Fallis, Montgomery, Paxton, Grigsby, and many others.

In 1952 after high school graduation, Bonnie moved to Glendale in Southern California and graduated with an Associates of Arts Degree from Glendale Community College. She served ice cream to customers at Foster's Freeze and later landed a job as a switchboard telephone operator. Bonnie attended the singles department at First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood where she met and married Emery Vernon Babcock in August 1961. Bonnie's first son, Phillip, was born in 1962 followed by Brenton in 1964.

During her lifetime, Bonnie moved extensively with her husband and family. In rapid succession, she wandered from Los Angeles and Orange Counties to Stanislaus, Butte, and the far reaches of Del Norte Counties before returning full circle back to Southern California including stays in Tucson, Arizona, Oceanside, Bonsall, Mission Viejo, Laguna Woods, and Laguna Hills.

Bonnie graduated from Cal State Northridge with a history major. One of her greatest achievements was serving as the general contractor who superintended the everyday operations of her dream house at Villa del Cielo in Bonsall.

Bonnie's favorite book was the Bible – the map for her entire life. She read it every day, often turning to supplemental reference books like dictionaries and commentaries for a better understanding of the scriptures. In her study above her large antique-style wood desk, Bonnie displayed the words of Psalm 46:10: ""Be still and know that I am God." "God is in Control" was posted on her Apple iMac computer and The Serenity Prayer by Reinhold Niebuhr was displayed nearby: "God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." These words guided her entire philosophy of life.

Bonnie loved opera, baroque, and classical music. She was particularly fond of composers Bach, Handel, Haydn, and Mozart. Some of her favorite artists included operatic tenor Luciano Pavarotti and violinist Andre Rieu. She was deeply moved by Handel's Messiah and Il Divo's rendition of Amazing Grace accompanied by bagpipes. Bonnie also enjoyed country music, particularly Dolly Parton's Coat of Many Colors, John Denver's Country Roads, and gospel music including The Old Rugged Cross.

One of Bonnie's favorite activities was researching her genealogy and family tree and making new connections and discoveries. She built extensive records and kept in regular contact and communication with a wide-ranging network of family and friends through Facebook, email, letters, and personal visits. Other interests included morning coffee, cat videos, antiques, libraries and books, cathedrals, stained glass windows, animals, and scenic landscape photographs. She was particularly fond of paintings with religious motifs and traditional themes including Lindberg's Guardian Angel Watching Over Children on Bridge and artists such as Thomas Kinkade and Scott Gustafson.

Bonnie is survived by sons Phillip Babcock and Brenton Babcock, their wives Olya Babcock and Diane Babcock, grandsons Tripton Babcock and Reidley Babcock, nephews Steve Babcock and Mike Babcock, nieces Donna Jo Bates, Sandra Sartin, Susan Lafollete, Jo Tunnell, and Karel McElfish, nephews Kevin Fallis, Dale Fallis, and David Ivey, great-nieces Jill Capozzoli, Karen Simonet, Sharon Pyle, Mike Pelletier, Steve Pelletier, Cherie Towers, Vanessa Montero, and Caroline Cooper, and other relatives including brother-in-law Rob Robles, sister-in-law Jo Ella Scotti, nephew-in-law Howard Townsend, grand-niece Sarah Babcock, and grand-nephew Benjamin Babcock.

She is preceded in death by her father William Monroe Fallis (1972), mother-in-law Pauline Wunsch Babcock (1977), nephew Donald Babcock (1978), brother-in-law Allen Babcock (1980), sister Pauline Dent (1989), sister Maxine Morgan (1989), mother Lura Montgomery Fallis  (1990), sister Minni Lue Ivey (1992), sister Willene McKinney (2003), brother-in-law Gus Dent (2005), brother-in-law Herb Babcock (2007), brother-in-law Marvin Babcock (2001), sister-in-law Bessie June Newton Babcock (2004), nephew Mark Babcock (2008), sister-in-law Mary Babcock (2009), husband Emery Vernon Babcock (2009), niece Lori Fallis (2011), sister-in-law Irma Babcock (2011), brother WM Fallis (2014), sister Linda Lee (2014), sister Carol Robles (2016), niece Shirley Townsend (2018), niece Sheri Montero (2019), brother Darrell Fallis (2020), niece Dianna Lee (2022), sister-in-law Kitty Fallis (2022), and nephew Terry Sartin (2024). She also leaves behind many of her dearest friends including Bob and Daulphine Winters, Joseph Barreras, and C.J. Kagamaster.

A private graveside service will be held on Monday July 8, 2024, 10:30 am at Fallbrook Masonic Cemetery, 1177 Santa Margarita Road, Fallbrook, CA 92088.

A public memorial service and celebration of life followed by a reception will be held on Saturday, July 27, 2024, 11 am at Laguna Beach Presbyterian Church, 415 Forest Avenue, Laguna Beach, CA 92651.

We do not want merely to see beauty.

We want to be united with the beauty-

To pass into it, to become part of it.

-CS Lewis