Owen Samuel Bunker was born March 7, 1929, in St. George, Utah, in the home of his maternal grandmother, Bertha Tobler Wittwer. He was the eighth and final child of Hector and Lydia Willamina (Mina) Bunker, and the only child in his family that was born with a doctor in attendance.
He grew up in Bunkerville, Nevada, a small community in southern Nevada that didn't even have electricity until the Boulder Dam was completed in 1935, but Owen loved living there with his family and friends, and was later proud to introduce himself as Owen Bunker from Bunkerville.
Owen was a timid child, and spoke of his mother as his defender and his "everything," but she suffered from cancer and died when Owen was only eleven. This loss was devastating to him, but even at such a tender age, his grief was accompanied by selfless gratitude that she didn't have to suffer anymore. His sisters took on the role of a mother to Owen, and he loved them and his brothers dearly.
Owen was a good student throughout his school years and was involved in a variety of activities, including student council, band, and sports, before he graduated as valedictorian of his class of thirteen in 1947.
Because of his grades in high school, Owen earned a scholarship to attend the University of Nevada in Reno where he studied chemistry. He was grateful that Wanda and Vaughn Abbott, his sister and brother-in-law, welcomed him as part of their family and gave him a place to stay during those years. At church dances in Reno, he met a lovely high school student from Sparks named Alice Oxborrow. They got to know each other gradually during his college years, but she had many suitors, and they never dated exclusively until he returned home from serving at the front lines of the Korean War and proposed with a beautiful ring purchased while on leave in Japan.
Owen and Alice were married in the St. George Temple on September 29, 1953, and moved to Las Vegas, Nevada. Owen had been hired to work as a lab chemist for Timet (Titanium Metals Corporation of America) in the Henderson plant. He would continue to work for Timet, eventually as the supervisor of laboratories, until his retirement over forty years later.
Within the first year of their marriage, Owen and Alice were blessed with a son, Steven, and bought a home in Henderson, but soon after, they were faced with two great trials. Alice's father was burned in a work-related accident, and Steve was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer that required surgery in Las Vegas and then radiation treatments in Los Angeles. Through these trials, Owen and Alice were supported by the love of family, the kindness of strangers, and their deep and abiding faith in Jesus Christ. In time, both Alice's father and Steve recovered.
During this time, as well as throughout their lives, Owen and Alice were active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Owen was a young bishop in 1957 when he was offered a position at a new Timet plant located in Toronto, Ohio. This would be a good career opportunity, but also a big life change, leaving behind not only family and friends, but also Steve's doctors. Owen and Alice prayerfully sought guidance, and received the answer to go.
Living in Wintersville, Ohio, for the next 40 plus years brought both blessings and challenges. They were far from family, and for the first few years, they had to travel about an hour each way to attend church services in East Liverpool, a town located to the north of Wintersville, where Owen served as the building project clerk for the chapel. In 1960, a congregation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was established in Wintersville, with Owen in a leadership role.
Over time, Owen and Alice made friends through church, community activities, and service. In the early years before the Church in Wintersville had its own building, Owen would take one or both of the boys to the Grange Hall to set up chairs, then make several trips to pick up church members who needed rides. He served one year as the local PTA president, and directed a neighborhood beautification project. He mowed lawns and shoveled walks for neighbors who couldn't do it themselves, and included his children, especially his sons, in these service activities.
Owen's children–Steve, Lisa, Pam, Jeff, Elaine, and Chris–loved one-on-one time with him, whether it happened during a work or service project, while traveling with him for his church responsibilities, or while he was helping them with their chores, paper routes, or homework. His girls also loved to be twirled by him on the dance floor; Owen loved dancing, so although Alice was his favorite dance partner, he was always ready to dance with any of his girls when Alice needed a break.
Along with dancing, gardening was one of Owen's passions. Whether in Ohio or Las Vegas, he carefully tended his plants. Over time, not only the vegetables and flowers in his garden grew, but also the size of the garden itself as little by little, rows of grass were removed to make way for more plants. Because his gardens were a mix of vegetables and flowers, they provided both a bountiful harvest and a source of beauty for his neighbors as well as his family. And for Owen, neighbors were family. He quietly watched for opportunities to serve, and then acted.
In 1993, after all of their children had moved out of the home and Owen had retired, Owen and Alice began the transition from their life in Ohio back to Las Vegas where they could live closer to family. Alice's mother needed 24-hour care, and so Alice and Owen spent part of each year caring for her with their daughter Elaine in Las Vegas. Owen was very tender with his mother-in-law, and treated her with all the love and devotion of a son. During these years, Owen and Alice returned to Wintersville each summer to tend to Owen's garden and associate with dear friends from church and the neighborhood.
In 2001, Owen and Alice sold their Wintersville home and moved permanently to Las Vegas. They spent much of their time with children and grandchildren, but Owen also made time for his garden, for service in the Church, including working in the Las Vegas Temple, and service to neighbors. He even painted the exterior of a widow's home in the neighborhood, and included his grandchildren to teach them the satisfaction of service and a job well done.
Starting in 2006 and continuing until the start of the pandemic, one of Owen's greatest joys was serving as "seminary grandpa." When the high school students would come to the church for their early morning scripture classes, he would lovingly greet each by name, show genuine interest in their lives, and exemplify Christlike love. The young people felt his love, and many kept in contact with him even after graduating.
In 2016, while Owen was recovering from heart surgery, Owen and Alice moved in with their daughter Pam Thorley and her family. Owen kept busy cooking and cleaning, planting and tending a garden, and generally serving in any way he could.
The Covid-19 pandemic which started in 2020 was especially hard for Owen because he loved to be around people–to meet them, to greet them, and to serve them–but his wife and sweetheart Alice was confined to home because of her health, so he spent most of his time with her. He made the most of every opportunity to be friendly, even if it was just going to a doctor's appointment. He also spent hours on his phone–texting, calling, and Facetiming. He reached out to children and grandchildren, nieces and nephews, reconnected with cousins and friends from his childhood, and complimented and encouraged many others.
Through every stage of his life, Owen was a devoted disciple of Jesus Christ. He faithfully attended church all his life, watching remotely every Sunday with his wife Alice when they could no longer attend in person. He loved going to the temple, and was grateful that he could attend one last time for his 94th birthday. He and Alice read scriptures and prayed together both morning and evening up until his final week when he could no longer speak. He faithfully completed many church assignments, and was delighted to be called as a ward missionary just a few months before his death.
He loved his wife Alice dearly, and especially towards the end, was constantly thinking about her comfort. He was often frustrated that once she was confined to bed, he could not provide more of her care, but still served her and the rest of the family in the small ways that he could, like shelling the pomegranates that Alice loved on her cereal.
Owen passed peacefully the morning of June 12 at home after all six of his children were able to gather. While we know that he is enjoying a long awaited reunion with his parents, siblings, and other loved ones who have passed before, he will be missed sorely by his wife of nearly 70 years, Alice Oxborrow Bunker, and his children Steve (Laura) Bunker, Lisa (Fred) Corbaley, Pam (Rollin) Thorley, Jeff (Suz) Bunker, Elaine Bunker, and Chris (Scott) Crawford, as well many grandchildren and great-grandchildren, both those who are officially part of his family tree and those who have claimed him as a grandpa. Two of his most frequent catchphrases provide wise counsel for all of us now: "Keep the faith" and "Carry on
He grew up in Bunkerville, Nevada, a small community in southern Nevada that didn't even have electricity until the Boulder Dam was completed in 1935, but Owen loved living there with his family and friends, and was later proud to introduce himself as Owen Bunker from Bunkerville.
Owen was a timid child, and spoke of his mother as his defender and his "everything," but she suffered from cancer and died when Owen was only eleven. This loss was devastating to him, but even at such a tender age, his grief was accompanied by selfless gratitude that she didn't have to suffer anymore. His sisters took on the role of a mother to Owen, and he loved them and his brothers dearly.
Owen was a good student throughout his school years and was involved in a variety of activities, including student council, band, and sports, before he graduated as valedictorian of his class of thirteen in 1947.
Because of his grades in high school, Owen earned a scholarship to attend the University of Nevada in Reno where he studied chemistry. He was grateful that Wanda and Vaughn Abbott, his sister and brother-in-law, welcomed him as part of their family and gave him a place to stay during those years. At church dances in Reno, he met a lovely high school student from Sparks named Alice Oxborrow. They got to know each other gradually during his college years, but she had many suitors, and they never dated exclusively until he returned home from serving at the front lines of the Korean War and proposed with a beautiful ring purchased while on leave in Japan.
Owen and Alice were married in the St. George Temple on September 29, 1953, and moved to Las Vegas, Nevada. Owen had been hired to work as a lab chemist for Timet (Titanium Metals Corporation of America) in the Henderson plant. He would continue to work for Timet, eventually as the supervisor of laboratories, until his retirement over forty years later.
Within the first year of their marriage, Owen and Alice were blessed with a son, Steven, and bought a home in Henderson, but soon after, they were faced with two great trials. Alice's father was burned in a work-related accident, and Steve was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer that required surgery in Las Vegas and then radiation treatments in Los Angeles. Through these trials, Owen and Alice were supported by the love of family, the kindness of strangers, and their deep and abiding faith in Jesus Christ. In time, both Alice's father and Steve recovered.
During this time, as well as throughout their lives, Owen and Alice were active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Owen was a young bishop in 1957 when he was offered a position at a new Timet plant located in Toronto, Ohio. This would be a good career opportunity, but also a big life change, leaving behind not only family and friends, but also Steve's doctors. Owen and Alice prayerfully sought guidance, and received the answer to go.
Living in Wintersville, Ohio, for the next 40 plus years brought both blessings and challenges. They were far from family, and for the first few years, they had to travel about an hour each way to attend church services in East Liverpool, a town located to the north of Wintersville, where Owen served as the building project clerk for the chapel. In 1960, a congregation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was established in Wintersville, with Owen in a leadership role.
Over time, Owen and Alice made friends through church, community activities, and service. In the early years before the Church in Wintersville had its own building, Owen would take one or both of the boys to the Grange Hall to set up chairs, then make several trips to pick up church members who needed rides. He served one year as the local PTA president, and directed a neighborhood beautification project. He mowed lawns and shoveled walks for neighbors who couldn't do it themselves, and included his children, especially his sons, in these service activities.
Owen's children–Steve, Lisa, Pam, Jeff, Elaine, and Chris–loved one-on-one time with him, whether it happened during a work or service project, while traveling with him for his church responsibilities, or while he was helping them with their chores, paper routes, or homework. His girls also loved to be twirled by him on the dance floor; Owen loved dancing, so although Alice was his favorite dance partner, he was always ready to dance with any of his girls when Alice needed a break.
Along with dancing, gardening was one of Owen's passions. Whether in Ohio or Las Vegas, he carefully tended his plants. Over time, not only the vegetables and flowers in his garden grew, but also the size of the garden itself as little by little, rows of grass were removed to make way for more plants. Because his gardens were a mix of vegetables and flowers, they provided both a bountiful harvest and a source of beauty for his neighbors as well as his family. And for Owen, neighbors were family. He quietly watched for opportunities to serve, and then acted.
In 1993, after all of their children had moved out of the home and Owen had retired, Owen and Alice began the transition from their life in Ohio back to Las Vegas where they could live closer to family. Alice's mother needed 24-hour care, and so Alice and Owen spent part of each year caring for her with their daughter Elaine in Las Vegas. Owen was very tender with his mother-in-law, and treated her with all the love and devotion of a son. During these years, Owen and Alice returned to Wintersville each summer to tend to Owen's garden and associate with dear friends from church and the neighborhood.
In 2001, Owen and Alice sold their Wintersville home and moved permanently to Las Vegas. They spent much of their time with children and grandchildren, but Owen also made time for his garden, for service in the Church, including working in the Las Vegas Temple, and service to neighbors. He even painted the exterior of a widow's home in the neighborhood, and included his grandchildren to teach them the satisfaction of service and a job well done.
Starting in 2006 and continuing until the start of the pandemic, one of Owen's greatest joys was serving as "seminary grandpa." When the high school students would come to the church for their early morning scripture classes, he would lovingly greet each by name, show genuine interest in their lives, and exemplify Christlike love. The young people felt his love, and many kept in contact with him even after graduating.
In 2016, while Owen was recovering from heart surgery, Owen and Alice moved in with their daughter Pam Thorley and her family. Owen kept busy cooking and cleaning, planting and tending a garden, and generally serving in any way he could.
The Covid-19 pandemic which started in 2020 was especially hard for Owen because he loved to be around people–to meet them, to greet them, and to serve them–but his wife and sweetheart Alice was confined to home because of her health, so he spent most of his time with her. He made the most of every opportunity to be friendly, even if it was just going to a doctor's appointment. He also spent hours on his phone–texting, calling, and Facetiming. He reached out to children and grandchildren, nieces and nephews, reconnected with cousins and friends from his childhood, and complimented and encouraged many others.
Through every stage of his life, Owen was a devoted disciple of Jesus Christ. He faithfully attended church all his life, watching remotely every Sunday with his wife Alice when they could no longer attend in person. He loved going to the temple, and was grateful that he could attend one last time for his 94th birthday. He and Alice read scriptures and prayed together both morning and evening up until his final week when he could no longer speak. He faithfully completed many church assignments, and was delighted to be called as a ward missionary just a few months before his death.
He loved his wife Alice dearly, and especially towards the end, was constantly thinking about her comfort. He was often frustrated that once she was confined to bed, he could not provide more of her care, but still served her and the rest of the family in the small ways that he could, like shelling the pomegranates that Alice loved on her cereal.
Owen passed peacefully the morning of June 12 at home after all six of his children were able to gather. While we know that he is enjoying a long awaited reunion with his parents, siblings, and other loved ones who have passed before, he will be missed sorely by his wife of nearly 70 years, Alice Oxborrow Bunker, and his children Steve (Laura) Bunker, Lisa (Fred) Corbaley, Pam (Rollin) Thorley, Jeff (Suz) Bunker, Elaine Bunker, and Chris (Scott) Crawford, as well many grandchildren and great-grandchildren, both those who are officially part of his family tree and those who have claimed him as a grandpa. Two of his most frequent catchphrases provide wise counsel for all of us now: "Keep the faith" and "Carry on
Owen Samuel Bunker was born March 7, 1929, in St. George, Utah, in the home of his maternal grandmother, Bertha Tobler Wittwer. He was the eighth and final child of Hector and Lydia Willamina (Mina) Bunker, and the only child in his family that was born with a doctor in attendance.
He grew up in Bunkerville, Nevada, a small community in southern Nevada that didn't even have electricity until the Boulder Dam was completed in 1935, but Owen loved living there with his family and friends, and was later proud to introduce himself as Owen Bunker from Bunkerville.
Owen was a timid child, and spoke of his mother as his defender and his "everything," but she suffered from cancer and died when Owen was only eleven. This loss was devastating to him, but even at such a tender age, his grief was accompanied by selfless gratitude that she didn't have to suffer anymore. His sisters took on the role of a mother to Owen, and he loved them and his brothers dearly.
Owen was a good student throughout his school years and was involved in a variety of activities, including student council, band, and sports, before he graduated as valedictorian of his class of thirteen in 1947.
Because of his grades in high school, Owen earned a scholarship to attend the University of Nevada in Reno where he studied chemistry. He was grateful that Wanda and Vaughn Abbott, his sister and brother-in-law, welcomed him as part of their family and gave him a place to stay during those years. At church dances in Reno, he met a lovely high school student from Sparks named Alice Oxborrow. They got to know each other gradually during his college years, but she had many suitors, and they never dated exclusively until he returned home from serving at the front lines of the Korean War and proposed with a beautiful ring purchased while on leave in Japan.
Owen and Alice were married in the St. George Temple on September 29, 1953, and moved to Las Vegas, Nevada. Owen had been hired to work as a lab chemist for Timet (Titanium Metals Corporation of America) in the Henderson plant. He would continue to work for Timet, eventually as the supervisor of laboratories, until his retirement over forty years later.
Within the first year of their marriage, Owen and Alice were blessed with a son, Steven, and bought a home in Henderson, but soon after, they were faced with two great trials. Alice's father was burned in a work-related accident, and Steve was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer that required surgery in Las Vegas and then radiation treatments in Los Angeles. Through these trials, Owen and Alice were supported by the love of family, the kindness of strangers, and their deep and abiding faith in Jesus Christ. In time, both Alice's father and Steve recovered.
During this time, as well as throughout their lives, Owen and Alice were active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Owen was a young bishop in 1957 when he was offered a position at a new Timet plant located in Toronto, Ohio. This would be a good career opportunity, but also a big life change, leaving behind not only family and friends, but also Steve's doctors. Owen and Alice prayerfully sought guidance, and received the answer to go.
Living in Wintersville, Ohio, for the next 40 plus years brought both blessings and challenges. They were far from family, and for the first few years, they had to travel about an hour each way to attend church services in East Liverpool, a town located to the north of Wintersville, where Owen served as the building project clerk for the chapel. In 1960, a congregation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was established in Wintersville, with Owen in a leadership role.
Over time, Owen and Alice made friends through church, community activities, and service. In the early years before the Church in Wintersville had its own building, Owen would take one or both of the boys to the Grange Hall to set up chairs, then make several trips to pick up church members who needed rides. He served one year as the local PTA president, and directed a neighborhood beautification project. He mowed lawns and shoveled walks for neighbors who couldn't do it themselves, and included his children, especially his sons, in these service activities.
Owen's children–Steve, Lisa, Pam, Jeff, Elaine, and Chris–loved one-on-one time with him, whether it happened during a work or service project, while traveling with him for his church responsibilities, or while he was helping them with their chores, paper routes, or homework. His girls also loved to be twirled by him on the dance floor; Owen loved dancing, so although Alice was his favorite dance partner, he was always ready to dance with any of his girls when Alice needed a break.
Along with dancing, gardening was one of Owen's passions. Whether in Ohio or Las Vegas, he carefully tended his plants. Over time, not only the vegetables and flowers in his garden grew, but also the size of the garden itself as little by little, rows of grass were removed to make way for more plants. Because his gardens were a mix of vegetables and flowers, they provided both a bountiful harvest and a source of beauty for his neighbors as well as his family. And for Owen, neighbors were family. He quietly watched for opportunities to serve, and then acted.
In 1993, after all of their children had moved out of the home and Owen had retired, Owen and Alice began the transition from their life in Ohio back to Las Vegas where they could live closer to family. Alice's mother needed 24-hour care, and so Alice and Owen spent part of each year caring for her with their daughter Elaine in Las Vegas. Owen was very tender with his mother-in-law, and treated her with all the love and devotion of a son. During these years, Owen and Alice returned to Wintersville each summer to tend to Owen's garden and associate with dear friends from church and the neighborhood.
In 2001, Owen and Alice sold their Wintersville home and moved permanently to Las Vegas. They spent much of their time with children and grandchildren, but Owen also made time for his garden, for service in the Church, including working in the Las Vegas Temple, and service to neighbors. He even painted the exterior of a widow's home in the neighborhood, and included his grandchildren to teach them the satisfaction of service and a job well done.
Starting in 2006 and continuing until the start of the pandemic, one of Owen's greatest joys was serving as "seminary grandpa." When the high school students would come to the church for their early morning scripture classes, he would lovingly greet each by name, show genuine interest in their lives, and exemplify Christlike love. The young people felt his love, and many kept in contact with him even after graduating.
In 2016, while Owen was recovering from heart surgery, Owen and Alice moved in with their daughter Pam Thorley and her family. Owen kept busy cooking and cleaning, planting and tending a garden, and generally serving in any way he could.
The Covid-19 pandemic which started in 2020 was especially hard for Owen because he loved to be around people–to meet them, to greet them, and to serve them–but his wife and sweetheart Alice was confined to home because of her health, so he spent most of his time with her. He made the most of every opportunity to be friendly, even if it was just going to a doctor's appointment. He also spent hours on his phone–texting, calling, and Facetiming. He reached out to children and grandchildren, nieces and nephews, reconnected with cousins and friends from his childhood, and complimented and encouraged many others.
Through every stage of his life, Owen was a devoted disciple of Jesus Christ. He faithfully attended church all his life, watching remotely every Sunday with his wife Alice when they could no longer attend in person. He loved going to the temple, and was grateful that he could attend one last time for his 94th birthday. He and Alice read scriptures and prayed together both morning and evening up until his final week when he could no longer speak. He faithfully completed many church assignments, and was delighted to be called as a ward missionary just a few months before his death.
He loved his wife Alice dearly, and especially towards the end, was constantly thinking about her comfort. He was often frustrated that once she was confined to bed, he could not provide more of her care, but still served her and the rest of the family in the small ways that he could, like shelling the pomegranates that Alice loved on her cereal.
Owen passed peacefully the morning of June 12 at home after all six of his children were able to gather. While we know that he is enjoying a long awaited reunion with his parents, siblings, and other loved ones who have passed before, he will be missed sorely by his wife of nearly 70 years, Alice Oxborrow Bunker, and his children Steve (Laura) Bunker, Lisa (Fred) Corbaley, Pam (Rollin) Thorley, Jeff (Suz) Bunker, Elaine Bunker, and Chris (Scott) Crawford, as well many grandchildren and great-grandchildren, both those who are officially part of his family tree and those who have claimed him as a grandpa. Two of his most frequent catchphrases provide wise counsel for all of us now: "Keep the faith" and "Carry on
He grew up in Bunkerville, Nevada, a small community in southern Nevada that didn't even have electricity until the Boulder Dam was completed in 1935, but Owen loved living there with his family and friends, and was later proud to introduce himself as Owen Bunker from Bunkerville.
Owen was a timid child, and spoke of his mother as his defender and his "everything," but she suffered from cancer and died when Owen was only eleven. This loss was devastating to him, but even at such a tender age, his grief was accompanied by selfless gratitude that she didn't have to suffer anymore. His sisters took on the role of a mother to Owen, and he loved them and his brothers dearly.
Owen was a good student throughout his school years and was involved in a variety of activities, including student council, band, and sports, before he graduated as valedictorian of his class of thirteen in 1947.
Because of his grades in high school, Owen earned a scholarship to attend the University of Nevada in Reno where he studied chemistry. He was grateful that Wanda and Vaughn Abbott, his sister and brother-in-law, welcomed him as part of their family and gave him a place to stay during those years. At church dances in Reno, he met a lovely high school student from Sparks named Alice Oxborrow. They got to know each other gradually during his college years, but she had many suitors, and they never dated exclusively until he returned home from serving at the front lines of the Korean War and proposed with a beautiful ring purchased while on leave in Japan.
Owen and Alice were married in the St. George Temple on September 29, 1953, and moved to Las Vegas, Nevada. Owen had been hired to work as a lab chemist for Timet (Titanium Metals Corporation of America) in the Henderson plant. He would continue to work for Timet, eventually as the supervisor of laboratories, until his retirement over forty years later.
Within the first year of their marriage, Owen and Alice were blessed with a son, Steven, and bought a home in Henderson, but soon after, they were faced with two great trials. Alice's father was burned in a work-related accident, and Steve was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer that required surgery in Las Vegas and then radiation treatments in Los Angeles. Through these trials, Owen and Alice were supported by the love of family, the kindness of strangers, and their deep and abiding faith in Jesus Christ. In time, both Alice's father and Steve recovered.
During this time, as well as throughout their lives, Owen and Alice were active members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Owen was a young bishop in 1957 when he was offered a position at a new Timet plant located in Toronto, Ohio. This would be a good career opportunity, but also a big life change, leaving behind not only family and friends, but also Steve's doctors. Owen and Alice prayerfully sought guidance, and received the answer to go.
Living in Wintersville, Ohio, for the next 40 plus years brought both blessings and challenges. They were far from family, and for the first few years, they had to travel about an hour each way to attend church services in East Liverpool, a town located to the north of Wintersville, where Owen served as the building project clerk for the chapel. In 1960, a congregation of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was established in Wintersville, with Owen in a leadership role.
Over time, Owen and Alice made friends through church, community activities, and service. In the early years before the Church in Wintersville had its own building, Owen would take one or both of the boys to the Grange Hall to set up chairs, then make several trips to pick up church members who needed rides. He served one year as the local PTA president, and directed a neighborhood beautification project. He mowed lawns and shoveled walks for neighbors who couldn't do it themselves, and included his children, especially his sons, in these service activities.
Owen's children–Steve, Lisa, Pam, Jeff, Elaine, and Chris–loved one-on-one time with him, whether it happened during a work or service project, while traveling with him for his church responsibilities, or while he was helping them with their chores, paper routes, or homework. His girls also loved to be twirled by him on the dance floor; Owen loved dancing, so although Alice was his favorite dance partner, he was always ready to dance with any of his girls when Alice needed a break.
Along with dancing, gardening was one of Owen's passions. Whether in Ohio or Las Vegas, he carefully tended his plants. Over time, not only the vegetables and flowers in his garden grew, but also the size of the garden itself as little by little, rows of grass were removed to make way for more plants. Because his gardens were a mix of vegetables and flowers, they provided both a bountiful harvest and a source of beauty for his neighbors as well as his family. And for Owen, neighbors were family. He quietly watched for opportunities to serve, and then acted.
In 1993, after all of their children had moved out of the home and Owen had retired, Owen and Alice began the transition from their life in Ohio back to Las Vegas where they could live closer to family. Alice's mother needed 24-hour care, and so Alice and Owen spent part of each year caring for her with their daughter Elaine in Las Vegas. Owen was very tender with his mother-in-law, and treated her with all the love and devotion of a son. During these years, Owen and Alice returned to Wintersville each summer to tend to Owen's garden and associate with dear friends from church and the neighborhood.
In 2001, Owen and Alice sold their Wintersville home and moved permanently to Las Vegas. They spent much of their time with children and grandchildren, but Owen also made time for his garden, for service in the Church, including working in the Las Vegas Temple, and service to neighbors. He even painted the exterior of a widow's home in the neighborhood, and included his grandchildren to teach them the satisfaction of service and a job well done.
Starting in 2006 and continuing until the start of the pandemic, one of Owen's greatest joys was serving as "seminary grandpa." When the high school students would come to the church for their early morning scripture classes, he would lovingly greet each by name, show genuine interest in their lives, and exemplify Christlike love. The young people felt his love, and many kept in contact with him even after graduating.
In 2016, while Owen was recovering from heart surgery, Owen and Alice moved in with their daughter Pam Thorley and her family. Owen kept busy cooking and cleaning, planting and tending a garden, and generally serving in any way he could.
The Covid-19 pandemic which started in 2020 was especially hard for Owen because he loved to be around people–to meet them, to greet them, and to serve them–but his wife and sweetheart Alice was confined to home because of her health, so he spent most of his time with her. He made the most of every opportunity to be friendly, even if it was just going to a doctor's appointment. He also spent hours on his phone–texting, calling, and Facetiming. He reached out to children and grandchildren, nieces and nephews, reconnected with cousins and friends from his childhood, and complimented and encouraged many others.
Through every stage of his life, Owen was a devoted disciple of Jesus Christ. He faithfully attended church all his life, watching remotely every Sunday with his wife Alice when they could no longer attend in person. He loved going to the temple, and was grateful that he could attend one last time for his 94th birthday. He and Alice read scriptures and prayed together both morning and evening up until his final week when he could no longer speak. He faithfully completed many church assignments, and was delighted to be called as a ward missionary just a few months before his death.
He loved his wife Alice dearly, and especially towards the end, was constantly thinking about her comfort. He was often frustrated that once she was confined to bed, he could not provide more of her care, but still served her and the rest of the family in the small ways that he could, like shelling the pomegranates that Alice loved on her cereal.
Owen passed peacefully the morning of June 12 at home after all six of his children were able to gather. While we know that he is enjoying a long awaited reunion with his parents, siblings, and other loved ones who have passed before, he will be missed sorely by his wife of nearly 70 years, Alice Oxborrow Bunker, and his children Steve (Laura) Bunker, Lisa (Fred) Corbaley, Pam (Rollin) Thorley, Jeff (Suz) Bunker, Elaine Bunker, and Chris (Scott) Crawford, as well many grandchildren and great-grandchildren, both those who are officially part of his family tree and those who have claimed him as a grandpa. Two of his most frequent catchphrases provide wise counsel for all of us now: "Keep the faith" and "Carry on
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