Fort Myers Beach woman who died in Hurricane Ian ‘lived life the way she wanted’
Bonnie Gauthier was a mother and grandmother. She was loved by the many people who knew her.
“She was a free spirit and loved to put smiles on everyone’s face,” her sister-in-law Sandra Fraser wrote on GoFundMe. “She was beautiful and giving.
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How to help: GoFundMe page for Bonnie Gauthier
“Bonnie lived life the way she wanted to and loved her family and friends deeply.”
The Fort Myers Beach waitress made people laugh, made them smile, made them feel welcome when they walked through the door at the Plaka restaurant, a popular Greek restaurant in Fort Myers Beach’s Times Square.
Gauthier died Sept. 28, when Hurricane Ian slammed into Southwest Florida as a Category 4 storm. To date, 53 people in Lee County have died in the storm. Most of the victims drowned.
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Reaction: Plaka on the Beach Facebook page message
“I can't believe it,” said Thania Villegas, who worked with Gauthier at Plaka in Times Square. “She was one of the best waitresses and she treated me with great affection.”
Villegas said she used to cook pasta for Gauthier since it was her favorite dish.
“I have very nice memories because I worked with her,” she said. “And I will always carry her in my heart.”
Fraser is hoping to raise $10,000 to help Gauthier’s son Dennis, bring his mother’s body to her home state of Massachusetts. By Saturday morning, the fund was at $8,800.
Gauthier had been in Massachusetts the weekend before the storm to attend her father's funeral, Fraser wrote on GoFundMe.
Before returning to Florida, she was able to spend time with her son and daughter-in-law and grandchildren, 2-year-olds Troy and Tristan.
Gauthier moved to Fort Myers Beach 10 years ago, Fraser said, where she eventually got a job at Plaka.
“We’ve been coming to Fort Myers Beach for over 20 years,” said Romy Swartout, who lives in Indiana. “We would come for breakfast on our last day. We loved having Bonnie as our waitress. It’s amazing how only seeing her once a year you still feel connected.”
Fraser said Gauthier’s house was destroyed during the hurricane, so none of her belongings remain for her family to treasure.
The restaurant also was destroyed during the storm.
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“It was a staple of Fort Myers Beach and for all of that to be washed away, it’s heartbreaking,” Swartout said. “We were just visitors but it played such a huge role in our lives and she was part of that.”
The restaurant’s owners, who are trying to raise money to rebuild, asked patrons to help Gauthier’s family in their time of need.
“After the hurricane settled, we were faced with the biggest of our losses this week,” they wrote on Facebook. “Our amazing waitress and friend, Bonnie Gauthier, didn’t make it through the storm. We are in disbelief and still processing life without her.
“We will miss her laugh, her love of blueberry muffins, and her enthusiastic ‘Hey girl!’ as we walked onto the patio.”
How to help
Donations to help pay for funeral expenses for Bonnie Gauthier may be made on GoFundMe at https://gofund.me/29fed9fe.
This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Ian: Fort Myers Beach waitress Bonnie Gauthier remembered as free spirit
