Bonnie Sue Clark, age 89, of Russellville, died on October 30, 2026, at the Russellville Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
She was born on March 6, 1937, to Leon and Velma Lee Riley in Hector. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her brother, Richard Riley; and her former husband and dear friend, Bobby Clark.
Survivors include her daughter, Mary Clark; her sister, Wanda Eddleman; brothers Larry, Barney, Chester (Genevieve), David (Paula) and Randy (Kay); sisters-in-law, Millie Riley and Jaynie Clark; special cousin, Ann Beavers; and many beloved and cherished nieces and nephews.
She was a 1955 graduate of Hector High School and attended Arkansas Tech and Navarro College in Corisicana, Texas.
Bonnie began her accomplished 40-year career in the telecommunications industry in 1956 at Continental Telephone in Russellville. She started in the operator services dept., being promoted to supervisor after three years.
In 1978, Bonnie was promoted to Central Office Repair Technician, the first female in Arkansas to hold that position at a ConTel location. She was responsible for the maintenance of a telephone switch at the main Russellville office and 13 remote locations to maintain telephone communications between local and long-distance service.
Her career continued as ConTel merged with GTE and she completed extensive company-sponsored technical training in digital systems design at locations from North Carolina to California. In 1985, Bonnie was recruited by GTE of Texas to become a Network Management Administration Center (NeMAC) Analyst at its regional office in Fairfield, Texas. Bonnie completed her formal career with GTE-TX before retiring in 1991.
Shortly after locating back to Russellville, she contracted with GTE to work on-site at its Greenville, Texas location for six months. She then contracted with ALACOM, Inc. as an electronics engineer, completing her career in 1996.
Throughout her career, Bonnie’s devotion to family never wavered and she served as a primary caretaker for two special family members.
During her career and afterward, Bonnie was active in several professional organizations, including officer positions in Business and Professional Women (B&PW), League of Women Voters, and membership on the advisory committee for the electronics program at the Area Vocational Career Center at Russellville High School.
The family would like to thank the wonderful staff of Russellville Nursing & Rehabilitation Center for their loving care of Bonnie for over a decade, and also to the LifeTouch Health Hospice staff for their extraordinary compassionate care during the last week of her life.
A visitation will be held at Shinn Funeral Service on Tuesday, Nov. 3, from 5 to 6 pm. A memorable service/celebration of life will be held in March 2027 to honor Bonnie and what would have been her 90th birthday.
Online guestbook and condolences available at www.shinnfuneral.com.
