Bonnie A (Allen) McKinney

Bonnie Jean Allen McKinney, 92, of Fort Walton Beach, peacefully passed away in the early morning of September 14, 2023.  

The Funeral service will be held graveside on Tuesday, September 19th at 2:00 P.M. at The Beal Memorial Cemetery with Dr. Mickey Hawkins of Cinco Baptist Church officiating. 

Bonnie McKinney was born April 27, 1931, in Evergreen, Alabama of Conecuh County, to the late Walter Albert Allen and Eugene Gorum. At the young age of four, Bonnie was dealt a difficult hand when she lost her mother who loved her dearly. A loss that would set back most only proved to show Bonnie’s resilience.  In her early twenties, Bonnie began a beautiful family of her own, first with her beloved daughter, Carol Smith Nielsen followed by her two sons, Gregory (Mark) and Steven Smith. In 1976, Bonnie met and married the love of her life, Harold “Mack” McKinney. Together they loved nothing more than being close to family and having them all over for her famous Christmas Eve gatherings, fish fries, and southern Sunday lunches after church.  Never far from her only daughter, Bonnie fell in love with and bought a home only three doors down from Carol. That home brought her much joy and allowed her to be an influential part of her children's and grandchildren’s lives.  Throughout the years, her home became a refuge for many a grandchild or pet.  Bonnie loved to travel, often taking her first-born grandson on weekend adventures to Disney World and Busch Gardens, even teaching him to become a master at the pool. Bonnie was always known to her grandchildren and their neighborhood friends endearingly as “Nonnie.” Nonnie’s candy bowls never ran dry, and her doorway was always open to anyone in need of a place to rest or visit.  To this day, her home continues to be a blessing and a safe haven to the children in her family.  Bonnie was not only a woman who loved life, she also loved the Lord.  Having attended Cinco Baptist Church for a number of years, she found a community there and garnered friendships that would last a lifetime.  Bonnie had a peace that surpassed all understanding. When life tossed you a set of unexpected circumstances, Bonnie always seemed to know, through faith and experience that somehow it was going to be ok. “There is always a silver lining,” she would say, and if anyone knew that truth, it was her.  Proceeded in death by her parents Walter and Eugene Allen, her husband Harold (Mack) McKinney, her brother Walter Allen, her son Gregory (Mark) Smith, her son Steven Smith, and her son-in-law Timothy Nielsen, Bonnie had firsthand knowledge of loss and love.  Even so, through it all, Bonnie kept her head up high, loving the Lord, and making new friends.  Recently she enjoyed joining in at the Meridian for Bingo and Happy Hour, Bonnie chose to never stop living her life to the fullest. She was loved by many and through her legacy, her appreciation for life and resiliency will live on. 

Bonnie was a wonderful, loving wife, mother, grandmother, inspiration and friend. Bonnie McKinney is survived by her daughter, Carol Smith Nielsen, her grandson and granddaughter-in-law, Derek and Donna Nielsen, her granddaughter and grandson-in-law Jeanna and Christopher Barlas, her granddaughter and grandson-in-law, Jennifer Stapleton and Matthew Crane, her grandson, Timothy James Nielsen II, her grandson and granddaughter-in-law Steven (Kyle) Smith and Kaitey Allen, her grandson Benjamin Smith, her great-grandchildren, Derek Nielsen II, Kate Barlas, Olivia Barlas, William Barlas, Grant Stapleton, Naomi Crane, Kendrick and Keanu Smith. 

The family would like to thank Robert Rice for watching over Bonnie in the last several months.  Robert’s continued care and companionship was a great comfort to Bonnie and to those who loved her. 

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