Leroy A. Gonder

LeRoy A. Gonder, 84, of Bowie, MD, went to be with the Lord on Friday, July 10, 2020.

He was born on January 27, 1936 in Sparta, Georgia to Eugene and Minnie Gonder. Eugene and Minnie moved their family to Kalamazoo, MI where he opened a dry-cleaning business. It was one of the first Black-owned businesses in the area.

From a very young age, LeRoy was always curious and maybe even a bit of a trouble maker. He would often be the one taking things apart in his parents' house just to see how they worked and then putting them back together again. When LeRoy was 10 years old, his family purchased the first television in the neighborhood; he was so curious as to how the people got inside of the TV that he took it apart. When his mother, Minnie, walked into the room and saw what he did, she looked at him and said, "Le, you better have that TV put back together and working before your father gets home." And he did. He was successful in that avenue but he did not always have success. His brother, Ronnie, let us know that once LeRoy attempted to fix up an old motorcycle to ride. LeRoy thought he had fixed it and began riding it down the street. Next thing Ronnie knew, that motorcycle was ingulfed in flames and LeRoy never spoke of the motorcycle again. These are just examples of LeRoy's curiosity at work.

He was the one who would find the good in the world around him and do what he could to do make the best of things. When asked how he was doing, he often said, "I'm doing the best I can with what I can" and that is the spirit of LeRoy: always making the best of any situation he was a part of. He is often described as a leader, a teacher, and kind. One of his favorite expressions was "how do you like me now?"

LeRoy was as good at fixing machines as he was at being a chef. His cooking skills led him to a long career in the food service and vending machine industries which eventually led him to become an executive in both industries. Along the road in his career, he also met his lifelong friends Tom Jones and Don and Jeanne Krischner Sheldon. He worked for Service America, Vending Service Incorporated, and retired from his career in 2001. But he wasn't done yet; LeRoy took his love of machines after retirement and worked for the Dell corporation building and repairing laptops and computers for pentagon officials.

LeRoy's values and sayings will always be remembered by his children. Some of his go to sayings were, "there's no such thing as a free lunch," "a fool and his money will soon part," "it's better to be thought a fool than to open your mouth and remove all doubt," and "the check is in the mail." He also taught his children the values of responsibility, dedication, hard work, and the importance of kindness.

These values were passed on to LeRoy's grandchildren through their parents and through he himself. LeRoy was extraordinarily patient with his grandchildren. He taught them cooking skills, reinforced the importance of being well-mannered, and how to enjoy the moments we have in life with the people who love us most.

In his last few years of life, LeRoy suffered from Alzheimer's but that did not outshine his personality. He was still cracking jokes, asking questions, and treating everyone he met with warmth and kindness. In his last hospital admission, the doctor working with LeRoy said he was kind, grateful, and pleasant even though he was gravely ill.

LeRoy was well loved by his children, grandchildren, his partner, Harriet, of 24 years, and many, many others that he met throughout his life.

He is preceded in death by his father, Eugene Gonder; mother, Minnie Barnes Gonder; Son, Kevin Gonder; siblings, Charles, Benny, Eugene JR., and Udell Gonder.

LeRoy is survived by his children, Melvin Wimbley (Pat), JoAnn Myers (Isaac), Lester Gonder, Paul Gonder, Tracy Campbell, Stan Grice, and LaRoy Gonder (Darlene); partner, Harriet Weems; mother of his children and lifelong friend, Phyllis Gonder; brother, Ronnie Gonder (Pat);

He is survived by his grandchildren LaMont, Clifton, Harold, and Kelli Wimbley; Shivaughn Petkus (Jeffrey); Shamika Mazyck (Matthew); Jordan and Joseph Myers; Jatai Gonder; Paulette Gonder; Sebrina Campbell; Brittany Harding (Keron); Shante Gonder, Dominique Gonder, Jared Gonder; Crystal Grice, Brittany Grice, Kristyn Grice, and Arianna Grice; Ryan Gonder (Samantha); Kimberly Gonder
, and Sean Webster.

He is survived by his great grandchildren Micah, Nehemiah, and Mara Petkus; Greyson Mazyck; Jazmyn and Niajah Gonder; Xavier and Isaiah Harding; Kaleia and Kameron Gonder; Jaylen and Sebastian Gonder, Tazhanae, Kamaya, Kamarion, Kyrie and several others.

Due to the nature of the pandemic and LeRoy's passing from covid-19, services will be private. We hope to celebrate his life as an entire family when it is again safe to do so.

In lieu of flowers the family requests that contributions in LeRoy 's memory be made to Joy's House, 2028 E Broad Ripple Ave, Indianapolis, IN 46220, phone number: 317 254 0828, joyshouse.org/give/; The Baptist Health Foundation Palliative Care at www.baptisthealthfoundation.org/donate/; and Hosparus of Louisville, 3532 Ephraim McDowell Drive, Louisville, KY 40205.

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