OA’s Bonnie Thomas to retire

After nearly 20 years employed by OA Schools, Bonnie will take a lifetime of experience with the district with her when she retires on Friday, April 21. 

She’s been what locals affectionately refer to as a “Flat Rat” since she was a towheaded little girl. A few months in Oklahoma, a few months in North Dakota, both stops many years ago, eventually led her back to the Flats, where she resides today, just a block or so from the district’s main campus. Both of those moves were “nothing earth-shattering,” Bonnie said, in her usual low-key manner.

She said her position with the district – as a secretary over the years, and today, officially, as a senior typist with the Pupil Personnel Department – may have been planted by an early influence, when she was still a student.

“I graduated from Owego Free Academy (OFA), in the first graduating class here in 1973,” she said. One of her favorite people from those days was Mrs. Irene Harders.

“I worked in the main office as a student worker, sort of a co-op thing, with Mrs. Harders. She was such a sweetheart,” Bonnie said. “Mrs. Harders was probably instrumental in me becoming a secretary. As far as teachers go, I didn’t have any clear-cut favorites, really. I got along pretty well with all my teachers.”

For Bonnie Thomas, it wasn’t just about connections with people. Her Sloppy Joe recipe (which is also very similar to her great-grandmother’s – go figure) is loosely based on the old school lunch OFA Sloppy Joe recipe.

“They taste very close to being the same,” she said.

Don’t expect Bonnie to venture too far after retirement. She’ll stay plenty busy with a part-time job, she said, and a bunch of do-it-yourself projects waiting for her at home.

“I’ll just be refinishing a couple pieces of furniture,” Bonnie said. “Those are first on my list. I’ll do that, and I’ll spend more time with friends.”