In August 2019, the Bonner Family Reunion was held in Carrollton near the campus of
the University of West Georgia. The day before – Friday, Aug. 29 – family members
joined UWG representatives on campus for an open house in which information was shared
on the current status of the initiative and a brief tour of the site.
During the visit, members of the Bonner family met with and heard from several representatives
from UWG, including but not limited to: Dr. Micheal Crafton, interim president; Dr.
Stacy Boyd, interim chief diversity officer; Dr. Ann McCleary, director of UWG's Center
for Public History; Deirdre Haywood-Rouse, director of diversity education and community
initiatives; and Keri Adams, assistant director of the Center for Public History.
Boyd thanked Haywood-Rouse in particular, who was instrumental in coordinating the
university's participation both Friday and Saturday.
Valarie Bonner Barnes organizes the annual Bonner Family Reunion. She's been doing
it for more than a decade, but the event has roots back to the late 1970s.
Barnes said she coordinates the event each year in remembrance of her great-grandfather,
Lupie Bonner. She said she's "sleeping so much better at night" because of the information
provided through UWG's Along the Ridge historical project.
"We are so grateful for the work the university is doing," Barnes said. "This project
has opened up a lot of information that we, as a family, will be processing for years
to come. This is a huge, historical moment we're at right now, and it's so good to
get small pieces of closure."
Boyd, McCleary and Adams spoke to the gathered group both Friday on campus and at
the reunion the following day, with McCleary and Adams also making contact with family
members who are willing to offer oral histories for the project. Many family members
also brought photo albums, written histories and family trees they’ve compiled.
“We were able to answer some truly insightful questions and share the story of what’s
transpired in the past year that’s gotten us to this point – and our early stages
of planning for the future memorialization of the site,” McCleary said. “It was a
powerful couple of days, and we were so honored to host the family on our campus.”
