Russell Edmund Bonsell was born June 13, 1935, to Russell and Neva (Endicott) Bonsell in Lusk, WY. He was the oldest of 5 kids: Joan, Janice, Connie, and Doug. Growing up Russell worked on the family ranch in Lusk. At the age of 14 and in the 8th grade he was diagnosed with Polio along with his sisters JoAnn and Janice. He spent 6 months in Hot Springs hospital. Due to polio Russell was paralyzed on his right side. Russell had his own way of getting out of bed. He would scoot to edge of the bed and fall right out on the floor. Russell went to grade school in Hot Springs. He then attended 2years of high school in Faith and 1 year in Sturgis. He worked on a ranch with his father. He tried to enlist in the Army but was denied due to his polio. Later he went to Fort Meade and worked in the kitchen for a year. In 1959 he took a job with Homestake in Lead, SD, for a year. His father bought a ranch in Ekalaka MT, where he worked for a while.

Russ married Leslie McDaniels on July 17, 1960, at Union Center, SD. He then leased a ranch in Fairpoint, SD for 2 years. In 1962, Russell and Leslie welcomed their first daughter Twila. They lived in Red Owl, SD. In 1964 they welcomed their second daughter Ramona. They moved back to Ekalaka, MT, to help the family on their ranch. The family moved to Newell, SD, doing custom haying for 14 years. In 1988, Russell & Leslie moved to Rapid City, SD, where Russell worked on Doc Casey's ranch, which was owned by Bear Country, for 16 years. In 2004, Russell & Leslie moved to Spearfish, SD. After leaving Bear Country, Russell missed the interaction with the bears. He started volunteering at Spirit of the Hills working with bears again. After working with bears for over 15 years Russell finally had a run in with a bear and he got his hand to close to a bear's mouth. He required several surgeries in order to fix his hand. This didn't stop Russell from going back, as he said, "he was going to show the bear who was boss." He worked until 2014. He always thought of Mike (owner of spirit of the hills) as a son he never had. Grandchildren always remember the times they feed baby bears with bottles. Russell never had a fear of bears he would walk right into pen with them.

He may have been a small framed man but he could pack the food away when it came to Holidays!! His daughters remember him driving a snowmobile & pulling a sled with them in it. The neighbors would come to enjoy sled rides and skiing, followed by having hot chocolate and making taffy & fudge.

He liked to play cards and when the grandkids would get new electronic games he would take part with them. They also remember how very good he was @ math; he could whip up a problem faster than a blink of an eye. His grandchildren remember when they would misbehave he would say, "here, here you better stop that.", and that would be it. One grandson was driving a feed truck while Russell was in the back throwing out feed. He let out the clutch a little fast, dumping Russell out of the back end. Grandpa wasn't too happy, so needless to say the grandson did not drive the feed after that day. He was a very soft spoken man who had a heart of gold...

Russell, 80, of Spearfish, SD, passed away on Sunday, May 15, 2016, at his home.

Survivors include his wife of 55 years, Leslie Bonsell, Spearfish, SD; daughters, Twila (Jim) Willadson and Ramona (Don) Adams; four grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; sisters, Joan Egge and Connie (Doug) Yates; brother, Doug (Rhonda) Bonsell; sister-in-law, Beverly Hale; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Russ was preceded in death by his parents; one grandson; his sister, Janice Gorsuch; sisters-in-law, Ronnie and Audrey; and five nephews.

Visitation will be 5:00 until 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, May 19, at Kinkade Funeral Chapel in Sturgis.

Funeral services will be Friday, May 20, 2016, at 10:00 a.m. at Kinkade Funeral Chapel in Sturgis with Rev. Tom Martin officiating. Burial will follow at Bear Butte Cemetery.