Fr. Carl A. Bonk, SJ, died on May 19, 2026, at Colombiere Center in Clarkston, Michigan. He was 84 years old.
Fr. Bonk is preceded in death by his parents, John and Josephine (nee Kosnetski), and his siblings: Eugene Bonk, Thomas Bonk, Robert Bonk, Eleanor Nicastro, Leona Osier, Dorothy Bonk, and Irene Fennimore.
Carl A. Bonk was born on October 27, 1941, in Detroit, Michigan. He entered the Detroit Province as a Brother on March 11, 1961, at Colombiere Center. After two decades in the Society, Carl felt called to the priesthood and was ordained on June 19, 1982, at Gesu Parish in Detroit, Michigan. He pronounced final vows in Cleveland on May 8, 1986.
While in the Society, Fr. Bonk studied at the Miller-Draughons Business College in Cincinnati (1963-1965) before earning a bachelor’s degree in history from the University of Detroit (1971). He studied theology at the Jesuit School of Theology in Chicago for one year (1979-1980) before earning a master’s of Divinity from Weston School of Theology in Cambridge, Massachusetts (1983).
After novitiate, Fr. Bonk was the registrar, assistant treasurer and secretary at Bellarmine School of Theology in North Aurora, Illinois, for one year (1965-1966). He was then missioned to study at the University of Detroit Mercy, where he also served as the community treasurer (1966-1971). Carl was then assigned to Walsh Jesuit High School, where he taught social studies (1971-1974) and theology (1975-1979). In addition, he was the school's treasurer. He studied theology at Jesuit School of Theology in Chicago (1979-1980) and Weston School of Theology (1980-1983). After ordination, Fr. Bonk taught theology at Saint Ignatius High School in Cleveland for almost a decade (1983-1992) before focusing his ministerial energy on pastoral ministry.
In 1993, Fr. Bonk joined the Cleveland-area Spirituality Team (1993-2000). He returned to his hometown and was the pastor of Ss. Peter and Paul Jesuit Church (2002-2009). In addition, he was the provincial assistant for pastoral ministry in the Detroit Province (2000-2002). Father returned to Cleveland, where he worked at the Jesuit Retreat Center (2009-2010) before working in the Campus Ministry Department at Saint Ignatius High School (2010-2014). In 2014, Carl was assigned to the Colombiere Center to pray for the church and the Society.
Fr. Bonk was a devoted priest and Jesuit. He enjoyed talking with others and wanted everyone to deepen their relationship with Jesus. He was pastoral with others and provided wonderful cura personalis to everyone he encountered. Father was known for his encyclopedic knowledge of baseball facts and loved to share these statistics with others.
Obituaries for clergy and religious who have lived or served in the Archdiocese of Detroit may be emailed to [email protected]. Obituaries are printed as they are submitted, but may be edited for grammar and style. Detroit Catholic reserves the right to refuse or edit any submissions.
