SANTA FE, N.M. — The remains of a former Santa Fe resident — long presumed to be lost at sea — have been found in the central Pacific and will soon be returned to his family.
1st Lt. Alexander "Sandy" Bonnyman Jr. was killed during World War II's Battle of Tarawa more than 70 years ago. He, as well as 35 other U.S. Marines, was uncovered on the island of Betio in the central Pacific southeast of the Marshall Islands last month, according to the Santa Fe New Mexican.
A Florida-based nonprofit History Flight found the mass grave where Bonnyman was buried using magnatomatry, radar scans, cadaver dogs, and interviews with surviving veterans of the battle.
Bonnyman, who was posthumously awarded a Medal of Honor, was one of about 1,100 Marines killed in the 1943 Battle of Tarawa. He has a white grave marker at the Santa Fe National Cemetery.
Clay Bonnyman Evans, a former Santa Fe resident who now lives in Colorado, said his grandfather and his valor were major influences in his life.
"I grew up seeing him as this amazing role model," Evans said.
Evans traveled to Betio for two weeks in May during the excavation of the grave site. He helped with the dig and documented much of it with a video camera. He said finding his grandfather's remains was moving.
"I was really overwhelmed," he said. "His physical remains matched what we would expect. We were very confident it was him, and we do now have a legal dental match completed."
Bonneyman's daughter Frances Evans said she remembers the tremendous loss of her father and how she had to deal with it as a child.
"I just remember that he was gone," she said. "I remember waiting for him to come home for Christmas, but he never got home."
