Obituary of Bonnie Bechtle

Bonnie Bechtle June 14, 2014 Bonnie Bechtle, 71, died on Saturday at her home. Bonnie had been an extremely active member of the James Street United Methodist Church. She had served as the Finance Committee chair, a tabulator for church events, Membership chair, a member of the Care Team, a member of the Administrative Council, a member of the Lay Leadership Committee. In recent years, Bonnie enjoyed working with the children from the Time to Climb Tutoring Program, for third and fourth graders from Huntington School. In the past, Bonnie served as the Chair of the Staff/Parish Relations Committee, Adult Leader for Junior fellowship, a member of the Planning Committee for the year-long celebration marking the 100th Anniversary of the founding of the James Street church, a member of the Church Visitation Committee, chair of the church-wide annual family picnic and co-chair of an annual fund raiser, The Taste of Christmas. The Post-Standard was Bonnie's second home. She started her career in 1960, days before her high school graduation. Throughout her 51-year career she worked in various departments, expanding and developing her skills sets to meet ever-changing business needs. Her roles over the years included Classified and Customer Service Operations Manager, Assistant Production Manager for Data Processing, and Project Manager for Business Systems. Her final role was as a HR/Payroll Business Analyst, a part-time, post-retirement position. Syracuse Media Group Chairman Stephen A. Rogers said Bonnie was fiercely loyal and hard-working. "Bonnie was a remarkable person and a fabulous employee," he said. "If a job needed to be done at The Post-Standard, Bonnie did it. She could sell, she could manage, she embraced technology. She was truly a jack of all trades and a master of them all." She was known for being an invaluable information source in the organization, as someone who got things done, who called it like it is, and who had a wicked sense of humor. She developed a network of long-standing friends, whose friendships have extended beyond the workplace. Bonnie was also a spirited Yankees fan, enjoyed going to hockey games and traveling. She was pre-deceased by a very dear friend, Marilyn Roberts. She is survived by her 3 sisters: Andrea Losee of Santa Cruz, CA, Nancy (Robert) Pierce of Lakeland, Laura (Michael) Shear of Modesto, CA; and several nieces, nephews, and cousins. A funeral service to celebrate Bonnie's life will be held on Friday at 1pm in the James Street United Methodist Church. Calling hours are Thursday from 4-7pm at the Goddard-Crandall-Shepardson Funeral Home, 3111 James Street. Memorial contributions may be made to the James Street United Methodist Church, 3027 James Street, Syracuse 13206.