When she was a teenager, June Bonham’s family packed up their travel trailer, leaving the cornfields and cold winters of Wisconsin for a better life out west. Her father found work as a tool and die maker in southern California. The next exciting chapter in June’s life was underway.
She was born in August 1923 in Fond du Lac, on the edge of Lake Winnebago. She had two siblings. June spent a lot of her time outdoors; she was a natural athlete. In the summers, she swam; in the winter, she’d ice skate. She left that all behind when the family relocated to Southern California.
June was at a church social in Glendale when she spied a tall, handsome fellow. Paul Harberts was the minister’s son and a student at UCLA. She recalls that one of the best dates she had with Paul was going to the beach. It was the first time she had seen the Pacific Ocean; what a thrill it was to touch the water!
After high school, June found work at the Bank of America, taking dictation for the bank’s vice-president. Subsequently, she found another job with Timm Aircraft in Glendale. She quit working when Paul volunteered to serve in WWII.
It was 1942; Paul enlisted in the US Air Force (Signal Corps). He was stationed at several bases in the U.S. When he was stationed in New York, June visited him. It was her first time in New York, and she loved touring New York City.
They were married in March 1944, when Paul was stationed in Salt Lake City. After he was discharged in 1945, they moved to Berkeley. They raised three daughters, Linda, Ellen, and Diane. Three grand kids and six great-grandkids round out the family.
Life in Berkeley kept them very active. Paul co-founded Harberts Bros. Sporting Goods on Shattuck Avenue. He was a trustee for Herrick Memorial and Alta Bates Medical Center and a longtime Berkeley Rotary Club member. June threw herself into volunteer work with Girl Scouts, church, and at a clinic for breast cancer patients. Her weekly routine included running, tennis and golf. They traveled the world, from Europe to Africa. Her favorite trip was visiting India.
Today, she lives in Folsom with daughter Diane Bennett and Diane’s husband, Steve. The family hosted a big birthday party to celebrate June’s 100th. As she looks back on her life, she says she has no complaints. June now embraces a slower lifestyle … watching her favorite television shows, having a cocktail every evening, and a daily snack of chocolate candy.
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