[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 125 (Tuesday, October 10, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1731]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      TRIBUTE TO RONALD BONKOWSKI

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. SANDER M. LEVIN

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, October 10, 2000

  Mr. LEVIN. Mr. Speaker, last Friday, the former Mayor of Warren, 
Ronald Bonkowski, passed away. His sudden death stunned all of us who 
knew him and thousands of citizens in Warren and elsewhere in Macomb 
County who knew him through his service in public office.
  Today, the date of the funeral for Ron Bonkowski, there appeared in 
the Macomb Daily a tribute to him, and I insert it into the 
Congressional Record as a testimonial to his life's work. I know that I 
express the feelings of my constituents in extending condolences to his 
wife, Christine, and their four children and his mother, Estelle 
Bonkowski.

                        Bonkowski Will Be Missed

       Ron Bonkowski will be missed. By his family, friends and by 
     the political types that take pride at being Warren 
     residents.
       In the years Bonkowski served the public, from his earliest 
     days on what was then the county board of supervisors, to the 
     Warren City Council and for three terms as mayor of Warren, 
     he did not define his public service as work.
       ``Politics is an art. First you must love it, and secondly, 
     know when to walk away from the turf of politics,'' he told 
     editors of The Macomb Daily during a visit with the 
     newspaper's editorial board.
       When word spread through Warren that Bonkowski, 62, had 
     fallen victim to an apparent aneurysm early Friday, the only 
     way to describe the reaction was that across the city, county 
     and state there was an expression of disbelief.
       The towering Bonkowski had been troubled in recent years 
     with severe back pain, a medical problem that triggered his 
     decision to retire from elective politics. He had recently 
     purchased a winter home in Arizona to escape our bleak 
     winters in favor of the dry, warm climate of the Southwest.
       Bonkowski's keen financial mind and accounting knowledge 
     proved to be an asset while serving as Warren's full-time 
     mayor, and through the years earned the respect of mayors 
     across the state.
       He won praise from mayors such as Dearborn Mayor Mike 
     Guido, who while attending a Michigan Week function in Macomb 
     County at the time Bonkowski was serving as mayor, said: 
     ``When I look at Warren's operating budget, and the services 
     its population expects and is getting, you have to admire 
     Bonkowski's financial wisdom at being able to get the best 
     out of every tax dollar.''
       During visitation hours at the D.S. Temrowski Funeral Home 
     for the public to pay respect to the former Warren mayor, 
     many who came shared their thoughts openly: ``He was a smart 
     man. And always boasted about the positive image of Warren. 
     We need more Ron Bonkowskis . . .''
       Former city attorney Walter Jakubowski, now a 37th District 
     Court judge, said of the many good character traits he 
     learned from the former mayor was ``to be true to yourself 
     and be loyal, and no bull . . .''
       And at today's services at St. Martin DePorres, the former 
     mayor will be remembered as a good family man, proud of his 
     Polish heritage, and thankful for having been given the 
     opportunity to serve as the mayor of Warren.
       We share the community's loss of its former mayor. He was 
     taken from his family and friends at too young an age.
       But in his length of public service, he accomplished what 
     some politicians just dream of achieving. His booming voice 
     was tempered with love and compassion for the people who 
     called Warren their home.
       Ron Bonkowski will be missed, but never forgotten for his 
     contributions to the City of Warren.

     

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