This memorial website was created in the memory of our loved one, Quentin Bonnette who was born in Texarkana, Texas on June 27, 1978.
Some of the other things we called Quentin was Quen and Qman. When Quen was about four years old, he called himself, Superman Finnton..he couldn't say Quentin, he said Finnton. Quen's pappy shortened that to just "Finn". Pappy always called Quentin, Finn. Quen was a lot like Huckleberry Finn. Quentin liked all of his nicknames because he knew they were all loving names. Sometimes I just called him "Q" and that is how he always signed the notes that he left me, his mama.
Quentin was very easy to love and if Quen knew you, then he loved you.
Quen was never a follower. Quentin liked most everybody no matter what age or who they were. If Quentin got a bad feeling about a person, then he told them and then he just didn't have anything to do with them. Quen was all about justice and what was right. Quentin was also a great story teller. He would could not sit still. When he told a story he usually stood up and used his whole body to tell the story. He could keep you in stitches, laughing.
Quen was one of those people that if it could happen, then it happened to him. He and I laughed a lot about how we both had to stop telling people stories about things that happened to us, because sometimes it was hard to believe that one person could have that much happen. Quen loved life and he spent his life living and having relationships with everyone that crossed his path. Quen was a person that if he thought you looked nice that day. He told you. If he thought you looked bad he would asked you what was wrong. If you needed someone to have you back...well he was there.. But if you were wrong..he would be the first to tell you that too.
Quentin was a very affectionate person..He was a hugger. Almost every picture I have of of Quen with someone else in the picture, Quentin has his arm thrown around that person. Quen was also a toucher. I always teased him when he was young and tell him that when he started to like girls he was going to get in trouble because he would be rubbing a person's arm or leg and not even realize he was doing it. I will say that I never heard of even one girl getting mad at him for touching or rubbing on them...Quentin was a charmer.
Quentin started out in first grade charming his teacher, complimenting her on what she was wearing, this or that. The first teacher meeting I had with Quen's first grade teacher, I could tell that she had fallen under his spell.
Quentin's charm did not stop at girls and teachers. He also was very good at charming animals. At three, Quentin came in the house with a live bumble bee by the wings...My first responce was to slap it out of his hand and stomp on it. Well, I did just that and it just broke his heart. And one morning that same year I woke up with a frog on my neck..Quen knew I loved frogs, so he had put one in my bed for me to sleep with. I have with our clothes washed frogs, snakes and just about anything that a little boy could catch and Quentin could catch just about anything that wasn't bigger that he was.
As Quen became bigger, he became a hunter and he would eat just about anything that he caught, That is, if I would cook it. And most of the time Quen charmed me into cooking whatever he caught. But Quen had to learn to do his own hunting. When he was in about the first or second grade, one day Quen came in the house, covered from head to toe with scratches, he was carrying a dead squirrel. He said "mama, will you cook this so I can eat it" Shocked that such a little boy could catch and kill a squirrel, I asked him where he got it. Quentin said, "mama, I got it from the cat. " I told him then and there that if he was going to eat something from the wild, he would have to hunt it and kill it himself. That's when he got his first BB gun. I do have to admit that day that from the scratches on Quentin, the cat did not give up it's catch with out a pretty big fight!
Quentin's love of the country and of hunting and fishing grew and grew. I have cooked many a squirrel, I hated it, but he loved it so much. Finally, Quentin got big enough to hunt, clean and cook it all himself. Quentin was never afraid to try eating anything. He would have been a winner on the survivor show. The last gross thing that I saw Quen eat , was the last year of his life. One night he called and said that he had been with some friends helping them castrate bulls. And Quen wanted to know if he could come to my house and cook the "Mountain Oysters" Of course I said yes, and to be honest, I had started to enjoy watching Quentin eat strange stuff. I always watched in disbelief and he and I would both laugh as he ate those things. When he finished cooking his Mountain Oysters, my whole house stank of the greasy smell..But Quen was happy and that it all that I needed.
Quen also brought many scary times into my life. Quen had strep throat and scarlet fever on and off for three years, Yes, I said three years. He was a very sick little boy. I finally started to home school Quen and Heath because Quen had missed so much school. Quen took to home school like a fish to water, he had his assignment book for each week. Quen would work to get everything done for the week so he had plenty of time to be outside hunting or fishing or sometimes we could go to Arkansas to see our family..we had many great family times. Quentin and Heath, Truett and Holly, Richard and Travis were all raised more like siblings than cousins. They all had very close bonds growing up.
When Quentin was in the 11th grade, he had a terrible car wreck. In a dense fog one night. Quentin had just left the house to go to a ballgame, He was happy and his music was blaring in his old ranger pickup. Just as he was leaving the house His dad hollered for him to be sure and wear his seat belt. I am sure he hated it, but he buckled up before he drove out of sight and about 30 minutes later our nieghbor called and said that they think our son had just had a wreck. Quen had knocked on thier door, looked at her, handed her his tooth, Quen said to her "here's my tooth" then he collapsed on thier sofa. He had hit the dash board and broken every bone in his jaws. I sat up three days and nights praying that God would spare my son..God answered that prayer and we were blessed with nine more sweet years before God called my sweet Quentin home. I do have two more Quen stories to share. One is that Quentin, up until the day he was killed Quen would climb a tree in our yard, grab a live squirrel by the tail and throw it down to our dog, Misty. Boy, Misty loved Quentin so much. Misty thought Quentin was Superman..and sometimes I did too.
Okay here is my last one, well, sort of, Quentin was also a snake charmer..he called one day and said, "Mama get a feed sack or something, I am on my way there" So Stephen and I got to looking for a sack. Quen slid to a stop and tumbled out of his car holding a live rattlesnake by the head. Well, I was to hold the sack so Quentin could bag it up. I have since been told, that I had the most dangerous job. But Quen being Quen and me being me...I did it. Quen said thathe needed the live rattlesnake, because the guy who rode to work with him didn't believe Quen when he said he could catch a live snake..Well, Quen made a believer out of that guy bright and early the next morning!!...I lay awake that whole night wondering why I had helped my son bag a live rattlesnake...It was Quentin's charm..I could not resist that charm..Who could? God, I miss my Quen so very much.
I could go on and on and on about the many things Quen said and did that brought smiles, pleasure, laughs and love to my life and the lives of many people that knew him. I hope many of you will share your stories on this web site. I know that if you knew Quen, you have a great Quentin story. Please share your stories with me and anyone who may see this site.
Quentin went to work for Patterson UTI on July 5th, 2004. Quentin worked about 7 days on his first rig, then he changed rigs. It was his first night on that crew and rig. It was storming, in fact it was flooding, that night. A fork lift cut an electric line and energized the puddle that Quentin was standing in and the fork lift. On July 29, 2004 at the age of 26. Quentin was electrocuted and died on a Patterson UTI Oil Rig. We lost a precious and strong son, brother, nephew, uncle, cousin and dear friend that night.
We will remember him forever.
Tributes and Condolences
story has touched me tremendously / Matthew Hayes
I work for patterson uti on rig 251i am from pennsylvania and have recently went through the 24/7 saftey class and when i seen your video and heard your story i was deeply touched..i have made it my commitment on my rig and with any rig i may work on...
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I miss him too / Blaire Harp (Cousin)
Trudy
I know that I have already told you this but I do feel I need to tell you again. I love Quentin & Heath very much and I am very happy to have had them both in my life. Thank you for giving them the chance to get to know me.
I love you
...
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becky.swan@yahoo.com / Becky Swan (Cousin)
I was fortunate to see Quentin just weeks before he left us. I had not seen him since he was a little boy. My Son, Cody was 15 and hadn't met his Grandma Billie's relatives in Texas and Arkansas so I took him first to Trudy's where we stayed for a ...
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Trudy / Lori
Dear Trudy, I had found this beautiful memorial to your Quen, by way of spirit space, and as I read about Quen, I could feel the love you share with your son, and it completely touched my heart. I too, lost the love of my life,...
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Qbert / Rick Bonnette (Uncle)
I called Quin Qbert one time and after the look he gave me I quit. I remember when he came to visit one time and he wanted me to fish with him. It was only about 100 degrees that day. After about 3 hrs. I was about to pass out, he insisted on staying...
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Rememberance of our grandson / Carroll Bonnete (Papa) (Grandfather)Read >>
Since Quen's death..Patterson UTI has implemented a whole new safety program..called "24/7, A Perfect Job"
Many lives have been saved because since Quentin's accident, this company decided to step up and put the safety of it's employees as top priority. They have also added hair folicle drug testing.
I did a video about Quen and how his death affected so many people. And how each of their own families would be affected should they get hurt or killed on the job...It did open many, many eyes...I have recieved more than 6000 letters from oil field workers thanking me and Quentin for making a difference in thier lives.
What I have learned about what happened to Quentin...It was a very stormy night and they were all completey wet with rain. It was Quen's first night on that particular crew.. They were breaking the rig down, only a three man crew. There was a pump that pumped the water out as they worked. Quen was pulling a chain coming from the well, and a fork lift moved in and cut the power cord to the pump. That cord fell in the water puddle that Quen was standing in and energized the water and electrocuted my son. The breaker did NOT flip as it should have so it took a while to turn the pump off..They were never able to revive Quentin.
Any of you that knew Quentin will know that when we see him again, he will want to tell us about the beautiful view as he took his flight to heaven..And we know that Quen can always tell a great story...
I miss him so very much and more every day!!!! Quentin would be so glad that HE has made a difference and that his life was not in vain..He changed things!!!
love and family Quen's legacy: Quentin did leave everyone that knew him, with a lasting memory that he cared and loved them. The last two years of Quentin's life, he moved around. From living in Texas to be close to me and Heath and nanny and pappy then going to Warren Arkansas, to be close to his dear friends and what were his second family. Next Quen would go spend time in Prescott, Arkansas to be near Mike and his friends there for a while. He lived for a while with his cousin, Truett, in Colorado. Quentin always made a trip through Louisiana to see his Uncle Troy and Travis and Aunt Cyndi. Quentin made visits up to north Arkansas to visit Holly and Jed. When he went through DeQueen, he stopped to see Bea and Kenny. You see, Quen's life was all about relationships. And he was very good at that. he had a big heart, he tried to hide it a lot, but he could not help it. He liked people and he dearly loved his family. Since Quentin's death I have had many people come up to me and tell me that Quentin always made them feel special..he noticed them and complimentined them..He built them up..gave them confidence. What a great thing to do. Quen was never a follower, he wore what he wanted to wear and it didn't matter to him what others were wearing or doing..He had his own style. Quen was never afraid to laugh at himself, He did not mind being the butt of a joke..If he did something stupid or embarrassing, He could not wait to come and tell me and we would fall to the floor laughing. Even in death my sweet Quentin is teaching me. He has taught me that life is way too short to be miserable. or to put up with people who are the same. Life is about love and relationships..Quen was right. He worried that he had wasted his life...Quentin you didn't you were who and what you should have been. Life should be lived and it should be fun. You should complement someone everyday and it is good to give people a hug. three days before Quentin was killed, he stood in my kitchen late one night. Quen was telling about things that had happened on his job..BAD THINGS...Quen stopped then he looked at me and said "I shouldn't be telling this to my MOM, but..Mama, your my best friend" Quen gave me that wonderful gift that night...Quen is special..I miss you so but your legacy of the love you gave me lives on..forever in my heart. and soul. And you are my best friend too.
Tributes and Condolences
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