Bonnie Woodall Strawser Obituary

We lost a major friend. A friend to wildlife and wildlands and to thousands of visitors, co-workers, friends and family.. Bonnie put in 42 years of work with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. She was there at the design and building of the current Pea Island National Wildlife Refuges Visitor Center and subsequent raising of the building to prolong it’s usefulness. She was there at the design and opening of the Coastal North Carolina National Wildlife Refuges Gateway Visitor Center on Roanoke Island. And she was there at the beginning of the annual Wings Over Water Wildlife Festival in 1997. For the past 2 years she was the president of the refuge non-profit support group, Coastal Wildlife Refuge Society.

Bonnie Gail Woodall Strawser, age 75, of Manteo, NC, joined Jesus in eternal glory on Saturday, January 10, 2026. Bonnie was a bold and adventurous woman of faith whose life was marked by courage, conviction, and a love of God and people. She was a lifelong learner, an infamous networker, and a woman of her word. If Bonnie couldn’t solve the problem, no one could!

The greatest honor was the privilege of calling Bonnie “Mom.” Jenna Erpelding (Bryon, Kory, and Mya), Amy Lane Outlaw (Ken and Laney), Erika Burkhart (Heath, Waylon, Heidi, Jolene, Lincoln, and Gus), and Kanan Strawser have that privilege. Bonnie was predeceased by her daughter, Anna-Marie Strawser; parents, Mary and Basil Woodall; and siblings, Gwen Lane and Sonny Alston.

Service oriented and always seeking the next challenge, Bonnie cultured a huge network of professional and community friends. She especially loved her fire family, Fish and Wildlife family, and her Source Church family, among countless others.

If only one word could be chosen to describe Bonnie, it would be trailblazer. She set the bar high. Truthfully, there’s way too many accomplishments, way too many travels and way too many stories… and we’re paying by the word!! So instead…

Please join us in praising God and celebrating Bonnie’s life on Sunday, February 1, 2026 at 3:00 p.m. at Manteo First Assembly, 812 Wingina Avenue, Manteo, NC 27954. Per Bonnie’s instructions, please wear colors – this is a party! A reception will follow.

Instead of flowers, the family requests donations to Source Church’s Source of Hope Food Pantry, 318 Budleigh Street, Manteo, NC 27954.