Resident Profile: Meet James & Marti Bondelid

Marti and Jim Bondelid’s lives were on a parallel course before they even met. They grew up separately in neighboring coastal towns in Washington state. When they were older, their families both moved to Seattle at the same time, but although they were once again geographically close, they never met. Both graduated from the University of Washington, where, for years, they bicycled to and from campus every day, unaware of the other’s existence. It was not until they began taking the same bus to work that they finally met, as Marti says, “just like in the Hollies song, Bus Stop.” To both, their meeting seemed almost pre-ordained, their previous “parallel existence” having been an obvious precursor to their lives together. Less than a year later, they were married.

Marti earned a degree in anthropology, with enough courses to qualify for a minor in Norwegian studies. Her Norwegian ancestry had sparked a fascination with Norway, and before meeting Jim, she had lived there for eighteen months, absorbing the lifestyle and language. She had no idea what she would do with a cultural anthropology degree, but fate had another surprise in store for her.

Jim had pursued a degree in music, specializing in piano performance, with an eye toward orchestra management. He had also earned an MBA in finance, which led to a long and fulfilling career in portfolio and investment fund management.

Eight years after marrying, Marti and Jim moved to the Chicago area, and it was there that Marti developed a deep interest in the Montessori teaching method. As fate would have it (again!), her anthropology background uniquely qualified her to teach Montessori. They enrolled their 18-month-old daughter, Elizabeth, in the local Montessori school, and after training in the method, Marti embarked on her dream career, teaching 3-6-year-olds.

After ten years in the Chicago area, Jim and Marti moved with their daughter to the Philadelphia area, where they lived for 23 years. Although Jim is also of Norwegian descent, he had not shared Marti’s fascination with Norway until he discovered a Norwegian relative who shared his last name. They began corresponding and developed a friendship, deepening an interest which Marti had already passed on to their daughter, Elizabeth. She visited Norway after college, just as her mother had years before, and the relative Jim had found took her under his wing. She fell in love with the country and took a job with a Norwegian company. She now lives in Norway with her Norwegian husband and two children, who are enrolled in a Montessori school–full circle! Marti describes this sequence of events as “another piece of the puzzle that just fell into place, like meeting and marrying Jim and teaching Montessori–a natural arc of our lives, just as our move to Cornwall Manor was.”

After Jim retired, they began looking at retirement communities. They had been attending musical performances at Mount Gretna for years while living outside Philadelphia, but neither were familiar with Cornwall Manor until a friend mentioned it. As soon as they saw it, Marti says, “We were totally seduced by this beautiful community surrounded by nature. We knew immediately that this was going to be our home.” In 2021 they moved into the Woods, and both have become active participants in Cornwall Manor life.

Marti participates in Bible study, tai chi, chair yoga, Zumba, and various Cornwall Manor Society activities. Jim has put his music background to good use, managing the Cornwall Manor Concert Series, which Mary Ellen and Bruce Beckman started 40 years ago. He says he is in awe of the Beckmans, and his dream is to “take the series to the next level.” He is focusing on attracting exciting young talent through his contacts in Philadelphia, at various local colleges, and with the Harrisburg and Lancaster symphonies.

Jim is also active with the Cornwall Manor Tree/Environment Committee. He is concerned about the aging white oak trees on campus, several of which are reaching the end of their life spans. Consequently, Jim has collected 100 acorns from white oaks around Lebanon county, germinating many in preparation for their eventual planting in the Buckingham meadow. These seedlings will be a priceless gift to future residents, living on to usher in Cornwall Manor’s next 75 years. Perhaps this contribution is yet another outgrowth of the “life arc” that Marti described–“the closing of a loop.”

Interviewed and written by Resident Debbie Tice.