Carol Ross Bondy, born in San Francisco January 26,1938, passed away July 3, 2023 in Modesto, Ca.
Carol was a first-generation American, the daughter of German emigres, Heinrich Ross and Elizabeth Ross, née Steinwachs.
She and her younger brother, Paul, grew up in San Francisco’s outer Richmond District and attended Saint Monica School after which Carol attended Presentation High School. She found she had an aptitude for academics and enrolled at the University of San Francisco. In the middle 1950’s it was uncommon for women to attend college and it was rare for girls from her neighborhood. Carol was among the first handful of women to do so at USF.
At about that time she met Peter Bondy, a US serviceman home on leave. Carol was tall, slim and striking with jet black hair she wore in thick waves to her shoulders. They met at a friend’s birthday party and Peter was captivated. A year later they married. For the next 63 years they were inseparable.
After a little more than a year of marriage their first son, Mark, came along. The next year Michael was born and two years after him came a daughter, Carolynn. With three little ones in three years it Carol knew that college would have to wait. She became a stay-at-home mom for several years.
In 1964 she and Peter moved to a run-down old house on Hudson Street in Redwood City. The place was barely livable, but between Peter’s ingenuity and Carol’s taste they gradually turned it into a lovely home where they raised their kids and where they loved to entertain. Along the way Carol became an accomplished cook and baker. The larger the occasion the more spectacular the feast. Her holiday celebrations were legendary. No one ever went home hungry or disappointed.
Once the children were in grade school she went to work part time at The Bank of California. She quickly worked her way up to more and more responsible positions, even though she had not completed college and even though, just as it had been in college, it was uncommon for a woman to excel in professional positions in a business environment. She met the snubs and challenges with composure and determination. She rose to be a vice president managing her own branch. Along the way she mentored other women striving for careers in banking.
Carol left BankCal after 17 years and joined a former colleague to start up a new community bank. They opened the doors of San Mateo County National in San Carlos 1987, ran it for a number of years and eventually sold to the group that would become Greater Bay Bancorp.
At that point, Carol and Peter retired. They had always enjoyed family trips, water skiing, and camping, but for the next 25 years they fully indulged their passion for travel. Several trips were just the two of them on the road in their RV. Many others were cruises or international tours, most often with their closest friends, Paul and his wife, Suzanne.
Peter’s second bout with cancer ended in early 2020. It was a heavy blow to Carol, but her love of family, friends and the possibility of new experiences kept her lively and as active as possible even as her own health failed. She will be missed, but her legacy continues in the career women who came after her and in all those whose hearts she touched.
Carol is survived by Paul, Sue, Mark, Michael, Carolynn, nieces Cathy, Jennifer, Karen and Sandy, nephews Jeff and Tim, grandchildren Adam, Austin, Nicholas, Alison and Lucas and great-granddaughters Aurora and Evelyn.
Memorial service will be held on Saturday, July 29 at 10:30 a.m. at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, 300 Fulton Street, Redwood City, CA. 94062
