June and Kenneth Bonewitz: Couple with disabilities wants to give back

Nov. 26--At first, you hardly notice that June Bonewitz, 44, and her husband Kenneth, 50, need help at all. The upbeat couple lives in a pleasant home in Round Rock with her mother, Margie Spinn, 76.

But in time, you begin to see the cracks. One of them looms overhead, where the ceiling was in disrepair from a roof leak; others are more subtle.

June Bonewitz has had cerebral palsy since birth, leaving the right side of her body mostly not functional. She also has bipolar disorder, which began to surface after her father killed himself when she was 16.

Kenneth Bonewitz has short-term memory loss, compromised motor skills and seizures after a car accident in high school. It left him hospitalized for more than five months.

Spinn has Alzheimer's disease, and June Bonewitz is her primary caregiver, bathing and feeding her. Finally, one of their dogs -- the couple has two, both rescues -- is missing a kidney.

If life is playing a cruel joke on the couple, here's the inspiring punch line: June and Kenneth Bonewitz are seeking help to become more self-reliant, so that they can give back to the community as volunteers.

"I think a lot about that because of our life experiences," Kenneth Bonewitz says. "I want to see if there's somewhere I can fit in, where I can help."

June Bonewitz would like training to become a certified peer support specialist, helping others with cerebral palsy.

Their differences make everyday life a challenge, which prevents them from the increased self-reliance that could lead to such opportunities.

Kenneth Bonewitz's automobile accident caused severe damage to his brain's frontal lobe and right hemisphere, he says.

"With my cerebral palsy, half of my brain is out, too. Together we make one complete brain," June Bonewitz adds, laughing.

She works as a crossing guard for Round Rock school district. Kenneth Bonewitz is a cashier at a nearby 7-Eleven. He sometimes walks to work because they only have one car. Because of their health differences, the college-educated couple is unable to retain higher-paying jobs with performance quotas. With the added expense of caring for Spinn, the couple struggles financially.

While most of the couple's wishes will enable them to become more productive and helpful to others, they do have one wild wish: to go on vacation, which would entail obtaining care for Spinn while they are away. While many people with less stressful lives take getaways for granted, the Bonewitzes haven't had one in a dozen years.

"We'd like to just get in an RV and go," June Bonewitz says.

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