Ronald Soren Creer

Ronald Soren

Born: May 26, 1915 in Spanish Fork, Utah

Died: August 26, 1995 in Spanish Fork, Utah

Parents: Charles Cannon and Mary Margaret Peterson Creer

Married: Beth Rose on March 24, 1936

Children: Ronald Deloy, Vera Beth, Charles Albert, Joyce Ann, Richard Lynn, Douglas Ray, Curtis Duane, Shawna Lee, Craig Rose

Relationship to Me: Great Grandfather (Creer Branch)

Ronald Soren (left)
and brother Harold Mark

Ronald was the 11th and last child born to Charles and Mary, and his birth came as quite a shock to some of his siblings. as his sister, Clara, wrote in 1988: "No one knew mother was expecting another baby...As far as I know she confided in no one and so it was with complete surprise and perfect delight that Ronald Soren was born into the family." Mary had suffered a debilitating injury some years prior, causing her to gain considerable weight. This fact, coupled with the idea that pregnancy was not something often talked about in those days, led to the "surprise" birth. All the girls in the family competed to see who would take care of him. Typically it was Alvera who got home from school first, so she spent the most time caring for little Ronald. Alvera thought, though, that Ronald was too formal a name for such a sweet baby, so she began calling him Bonnie. This nickname stuck with him for the rest of his life.

Ronald Soren and nephew Ledru

When Bonnie was 11 years old Mary Margaret died of heart failure and the task of raising him was left to his father, Charles. By this time all of the Creer sisters had married and moved away, and although they all had offered to raise Bonnie, Charles insisted. Eventually his older brother Harold came back home to help with the family farm. The great depression was in full swing, and Charles' health made farming a challenge.

Ronald Soren and children, Joyce Ann
and Ronald Deloy

Bonnie attended school in Spanish Fork. He married Beth Rose in 1936, and soon after their first son was born, Ronald Deloy. Beth and Bon had nine children, although only 5 would survive to adulthood. Vera Beth, Shawna Lee and Craig Rose were all stillborn or died shortly after birth. Charles Albert died in 1943, when he was three and a half years old, from complications of German measles. Bonnie build a home in Leland, and another in Spanish Fork.

Ronald Soren with brother in law
Stewart Mason

Like his father and grandfather, Bonnie made his living primarily from farming and ran his own farm for a number of years. He also drove truck for Premium Oil for a time, in order to supplement his income.

Ronald Soren and Beth

He and Beth enjoyed camping and fishing. They held many callings in the church. One of their favorite programs to help out with was the Boy Scouts. In 1986 Beth and Bon celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary, eight months after the birth of their first great grandchild.

Ronald Soren's 80th Birthday
Back Row L-R: Joan Krebs Creer, Joyce Ann, Curtis Duane,
Judy Henline Creer, Karolyn Searles Creer
Front Row L-R: Ronald Deloy, Ronald Soren, Beth,
Richard Lynn, Douglas Ray

In 1995 Bonnie celebrated his 80th birthday. All of his children, and many of his grand- and great-grandchildren attended a party in the park across the street from the house where he was born, and where his brother Harold still lived. Shortly thereafter, though, he fell ill. In August of 1995 Bonnie passed away, leaving behind his sweetheart of nearly 60 years.

L-R Harold, Clara, Ann, and Ronald Soren
In the background is one of the great mirrors hanging
in Harold and Laura's house

Now comes the fun part. I was lucky enough to have known my great grandfather, and was born when a few of his siblings were still alive. Aunt Cal (Clara), Aunt Ann (Elizabeth) and Uncle Harold were all still alive when I was growing up, although I can only recall ever meeting Uncle Harold and his wife Laura. I visited their home a few times, the home that my great-great-grandfather built, and I remember playing under the huge pine trees in the yard with my cousins. I went inside once, and in the front room was a great mirror hanging on the wall. Aunt Laura told me very cryptically that if I looked into the mirror I could see my family's future as well as its past. As I child I took this to mean that the mirror was magic, like in a storybook, but now that I'm older I understand that she was talking about the history of the house and its aged inhabitants being viewed in the same mirror as the family's youngest generation. I still hold a spark of hope that the mirror was magic, though. Aunt Ann and Aunt Cal I never met, but the family always boasted many creative skills that they possessed, such as china painting. I always wanted to go to their house so that they could teach me how to paint china, but this never came to pass.

Me, with my great grandpa

My earliest recollection of great grandpa is before I was old enough to go to school. He and great grandma drank coffee in the morning and tea at night. I remember that on this particular evening they fixed a cup of tea for me as well, so I was able to share a cup of tea with my great grandparents. Grandpa had a piggy bank shaped like a butler, and the platter the butler was holding read "retirement fund." I always begged my mother to give me a coin to put in the bank, which brought a smile to grandpa's face. He had a big orange metal desk that looked like a cabinet when you closed it up. This is where he kept his important papers, and I was forever being scolded for getting into grandpa's desk, looking for papers to color on. In the TV room was a lamp that had Model A and Model T cars on it, and great grandma told me that grandpa owned a Model A car just like the one on the lamp. In the mornings grandpa would dress in the bedroom before coming out to sit at the dining room table to put his shoes on while he drank his coffee. He sang You're the Cream in My Coffee while he did this, but modified the words to better fit the situation. "You're the cream in my coffee, you're the lace in my shoe." When he and great grandma lived in their little brick house in Spanish Fork, grandpa granted my brother and myself access to his workshop (something that seldom happened, as far as I'm aware) so that we could make toy boats to sail down the irrigation ditch that ran in front of the house. After he passed away we continued to make boats, and when our parents told us to stop we insisted that it was okay because grandpa had said so. He owned a brown and tan pickup truck which he had driven as far back as I could remember, and likely longer than I was alive. The pickup had mudflaps featuring Yosemite Sam which read "Back Off." He found those mudflaps to be quite amusing indeed.