Bonnie Jean Yaroch

Celebrating the Beautiful Life of Bonnie Jean Yaroch

Enchanting is the best word to describe Bonnie Jean Yaroch. Not only for her lifelong external beauty, but for her dazzling smile—for her kind heart and the wholly unique love she offered friends and family fortunate enough to hold a place within it.Her life certainly wasn’t always glamourous, but with graceful perseverance she crafted each day into something far from mundane.She cared fiercely. Bonnie was the type of person who cooked chicken soup when her children were ill and made their Halloween costumes herself from scratch. She was the type of person who sent thank you notes with chocolates to nurses, and embroidered Christmas pillowcases for each of her grandchildren. She was the type of person who made you feel special. She was extraordinary.

Bonnie Jean (McHaig) Yaroch was born October 28th, 1941, in Windsor, Ontario to Scottish and Lebanese parents (later relocating to Hamtramck, MI). Her childhood and teenage years weren’t smooth sailing: by the time she graduated from Hamtramck High School in 1959, she had already lost her mother to cancer. She later lost her father shortly after she was married. Hand in hand with her brother Bill and sisters Joyce and Lorraine, she weathered the storm. Through faith and sheer grit, she triumphed over tragedies that would dismantle most. Bonnie honored her parents by actively choosing to cultivate joy from young adulthood onward. Grief was an acknowledged passenger, but never the captain, of her own destiny.

Bonnie went on to work as a nursing assistant and as a secretary at Helm Bindery, where she crossed paths with the love of her life. Irvin Yaroch, a handsome young man clad in pink dress shirt, was a client of Helm Bindery. They were instantly smitten upon their meeting, and after dating for a time, were married on April 24th, 1965. It takes only a quick skim through their wedding album to understand the type of marriage they had. Bonnie, stunning in a timeless A-line gown and a headpiece veil she made herself, beams at Irv as she walks down the aisle of St. Florian Cathedral (escorted by Bill). They gaze at each-other at the golden altar, and in their eyes, a lifetime of enduring love blooms perpetual. They remained married for 57 years.

Soon after marrying, Bonnie and Irv established their own family in Sterling Heights. Bonnie took up the role of stay-at-home mother to her four children while Irv worked in advertising for Chrysler. Bonnie sought excellence in everything she did, and naturally brought that drive into her homemaking. There simply wasn’t anything she couldn’t do! Bonnie made cooking an artform: some of her best dinners featured prime rib with Yorkshire pudding, glazed ham, mushroom soup, cabbage rolls, pierogies, meat pies and spaghetti. She honored her mother’s Lebanese roots often by making traditional dishes like hummus, tabbouleh, mujadara and kibbeh nayeh. Besides dinner, Bonnie’s desserts were legendary. She specialized in everything from cookies and baklava, to grand cream puff towers, pies (with lard, never butter), breads, streussels and tiered cakes. She was an excellent seamstress, a talented crafter of décor (including wreaths and wedding floral arrangements), and a holiday planning extraordinaire. Thanksgivings, Christmases, and Easters in the Yaroch home were nothing short of magical. Bonnie decorated the house to the nines and cooked elaborate feasts, making sure the very atmosphere sparkled. Day to day, she never missed a basketball game, football game, cheer competition, or dance recital, cherishing opportunities to motivate and encourage her children. She had a strong faith in God, and it showed when she and Irv decided to send their children to St. Lawrence Catholic school from first to eighth grade.

Bonnie had a servant’s heart that extended beyond her own home. She was proud to serve her community, and often assisted at St. Ephrem and St. Lawrence with teaching catechism and planning large-scale, themed church fundraisers. To say Bonnie’s fundraisers were grand would be an understatement: they included everything from fashion shows to performances featuring belly dancers, and talented local musicians.

As her children grew older and began middle and high school, Bonnie entered a season of transition and became a manager at Burlington Coat Factory. Having always been a leader, she took to the position naturally. Each day, she proudly kept her store organized, well-stocked and welcoming. She continued to work there as she and Irv opened a family business, then later transitioned exclusively into the role of business owner. SitNSleep furniture store was a pillar of the Yaroch family and of the Shelby Township community. Irv and Bonnie’s sons worked there for years. Through family teamwork, the business became a success.

Bonnie always loved children. Naturally, as her own children married and started families of their own, she adored all nine of her grandchildren (who called her “Sitty”). She was a quintessential mother and grandmother in every sense of the word. Holidays remained wonderful with a few exciting tweaks. She and Irv’s picturesque home in Romeo (lovingly dubbed “The Lodge”) provided a gorgeous new set for memory-making. Bonnie adored hosting extravagant yearly Halloween costume parties there complete with spooky food (like raisin-bread “witch’s fingers”), trick-or-treating, and haunted tractor hayrides through the property’s forested trails for her grandchildren (complete with “actors” (uncles) in scary masks). When Christmas came, she purchased a Santa Claus suit for Irv to visit the grandkids in on Christmas Eve night. Around Easter, you could find Bonnie stuffing vibrant plastic eggs with candy and coins to be hidden for a massive egg hunt throughout the property. When her granddaughters were little, she made them matching Easter dresses to wear. Outside of the holidays, Bonnie enjoyed making baby-doll and American Girl Doll clothes for all her granddaughters. She judged cannonball contests in the property’s back pond. She would always play cards and games with excitement and a healthy level of competition. She was a voracious reader of criminal thrillers, mysteries, and horror, and she loved to lend her books to others. She enjoyed learning new technology and became quite good at it. She loved good movies, good jokes, and good company. Music was also one of her greatest passions. In her youth she picked up violin but could not continue. Later in life, she returned to it with her granddaughter’s assistance, and even put on a few Christmas concerts for family and friends.

Bonnie never hesitated to tell you what was on her mind, meaning every word with love, and approached her life with a frank, rare sort of honesty and humor. She suffered through extreme health issuesbut never let it dim her spirit. Most of all, Bonnie was uncommonly kind and generous. Anything she had, she shared with others. The time we spent knowing her was a gift. She will always be cherished, for her imprint is one that cannot be erased by time. The mark of a truly kind, beautiful soul is one that never fades.

Bonnie is survived by her husband Irvin, her brother William(Cathy), her four children, Jill, Tim (Rhonda), John (Vickie) and Courtney (Mark),and by her grandchildren Hannah, Luke, Mark, Parker, Sydney, Olivia, Delaney, Garrett, and Gibson, also

cousins, nieces and nephews and by a long list of friends. She is preceded in death by her mother Elsie, father William and sisters Joyce and Lorraine.

Visitation will be held on Wednesday September 14, 2022 from 1-8 pm at the Henry M. Malburg Funeral Home in Romeo, Mi.

Funeral Service will be on Thursday September 15, 2022 at 11am. Service will also be held at the Funeral Home.