BELLEVILLE POST

By Joe Ungaro Editor

Lonnie G. Bunch

III

returned to his hometown and received a hero’s welcome.

The street he grew up on was named in his honor after the high school chorus sang the national anthem, the mayor spoke of his accomplishments and an old friend who is now a township councilman marveled at all he had achieved.

As Secretary of the Smithsonian, Bunch oversees the world’s largest museum, education and research complex. The Smithsonian includes 21 museums, 21 libraries, the National Zoo, numerous research centers and several education units and centers. Two new museums — the National Museum of the American Latino and the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum — are in development.

Three generations of the Bunch family lived in Belleville. His grandfather, Lonnie, bought the house on Beech Street exactly 100 years ago on the same date the ceremony was held. His father was born in the house and his parents lived there after getting married.

His father, Lonnie Jr., was a science and chemistry public school teacher. His mother, Montrose, was a third-grade public school teacher.

“I loved growing up here but it wasn’t always easy,” Bunch said, turning to look up Greylock Parkway. “I remember running down this street, dodging fists and hearing racial epithets.”

About 200 people gathered at the intersection of Greylock and Beech Street for the ceremony. Among those in attendance were Bunch’s 95-year-old mother, his wife and brother, the police chief, the fire chief, an AP history class from Belleville