LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – One of the men who made up the little band of Lake County’s Pearl Harbor survivors has died.

Clarence Adam “Bud” Boner of Clearlake Oaks died on Wednesday, Nov. 21. He was 90 years old.

Shortly before he died, Boner drove himself to a local hospital rather than calling anyone for assistance, according to his brother, Melvin Boner, of East Wenatchee, Wash.

“He was stubborn,” Melvin Boner said of his brother.

“Bud,” as he was known to his friends, was a familiar face at regular gatherings of the local Pearl Harbor Survivors Association, whose members had survived the Japanese attack at Pearl Harbor on the morning of Sunday, Dec. 7, 1941. An estimated 2,400 lives were lost that day.

While Boner frequented the commemorations, he rarely spoke about his experiences, although friends noted that his eyes often filled with tears during the solemn ceremonies.

Boner was born on April 22, 1922, in Dodge City, Kansas, to parents Clarence “Clyde” Boner and Pearl Medley. He was one of seven children, with three boys and four girls.

He decided to enlist at a “bad time” for the country and, at the same time, wanted to get out of school, said his brother.

“He was 17 when he got permission from my mother,” Melvin Boner recalled.

Assigned to the U.S.S. Tennessee, the 19-year-old Boner reportedly was below deck when the attack started at 7:55 a.m. He would remain below working in the ship until 3 p.m. that day.

According to the Naval Historical Center, the Tennessee was one of eight battleships present for the Pearl Harbor attack.

The ship, which was moored inboard of USS West Virginia and next in line to the USS Arizona, was hit twice within minutes of the beginning of the bombardment.

A Pearl Harbor chronology noted that a bomb hit the second of the four gun turrets on its face, and another bomb penetrated the third turret. The Tennessee also was scorched by the burning oil from the USS Arizona, which was blown up by the raid.

The Naval Historical Center history said that the Tennessee underwent temporary repairs before going to the Puget Sound Navy Yard in Washington for an overhaul, returning there in 1942 for modernization. The ship eventually would be scrapped in 1959.

Another local Pearl Harbor Survivor, Henry Anderson of Lakeport, also was aboard the Tennessee at the time of the attack.

While Anderson remained with the ship while it went to Washington for repairs and upgrades, Boner would be assigned to the destroyer DD-466 U.S.S. Waller, and would spend the rest of the war with the ship, his brother said.

His brothers Melvin Boner and Arthur Alpers both also served in the military during the war. Melvin Boner recalled seeing his older brother Bud in San Francisco in 1945, when the U.S.S. Waller came in for repairs.

“They had rammed another ship and tore up the bow,” Melvin Boner said.

Once the war ended, Bud Boner was discharged – on Dec. 7, 1946, his brother recalled.

Bud Boner was placed in the Navy Reserve, and in 1951 was called back when the Korean War started,  Melvin Boner said. He received a Purple Heart during that war and was discharged in 1954.

On Sept. 17, 1952, Bud Boner married June Citrino in Reno, Nev. Melvin Boner said the couple made their home in the Bay Area, where they moved in 1954. Bud Boner worked for Lincoln-Mercury.

It was during a visit to see friends that the couple became acquainted with Lake County and ended up buying a “weekend hideout,” Melvin Boner said.

Bud Boner retired from Lincoln-Mercury in 1985 and he and his wife moved to Lake County. June Boner had been ill, and her husband “took care of her continuously,” his brother said. She died in September of that same year.

Melvin Boner said his brother enjoyed the outdoors. “He didn’t care about fishing but he liked to hunt.”

Bud Boner had continued to be an avid deer hunter until only four or five years ago, according to friends.

He had been in good health up until this last year. Melvin Boner visited his brother this past September, and said he wasn’t doing well at that point.

Bud Boner was a good man, his brother said. “Everybody in town that knew him liked him.”

In addition to wife June, Boner was preceded in death by two sisters, Lorene Smith of California and June Meyer of Ulysses, Kansas.

Besides brother Melvin, Boner is survived by brother Arthur Alpers of Milbrae, Calif.; and sisters, Dora May Broberg of Midvale, Utah, and Patsy Robertson of Montezuma, Kansas.

There will be no services for Boner, his brother said. “He wasn’t the kind of guy that wanted that.”

Boner is the fifth local Pearl Harbor survivor to die since May of 2011. He was preceded by his fellow sailors Walter Urmann, USS Blue DD387, March 25; Chuck Bower, US Sub Base, Nov. 12, 2011; Jim Harris, USS Dobbin, Jan. 8, 2011; and Floyd Eddy, mine sweeper USS Trever, May 14, 2011.

Henry Anderson and Bill Slater, both of Lakeport, are the county’s last remaining Pearl Harbor survivors.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – Pearl Harbor Survivors, Chapter 23 North, Lake and Mendocino Counties, will observe the 71st anniversary of the bombing of Pearl Harbor on Friday, Dec. 7.

The ceremony will take place from 9 a.m. to 9:15 a.m. in Library Park and then from 9:15 a.m. to 10 a.m. in the council chambers at Lakeport City Hall, 225 Park St.

The attack of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii by the Japanese occurred on Sunday, Dec. 7, 1941, at 7:55 a.m. Hawaiian time.

This day is when we honor those who bravely fought and who gave all that day. President Franklin Roosevelt proclaimed it, “A date which will live in infamy.”

The guest speaker at the commemoration will be Dr. William Cornelison, retired Lake County superintendent of schools. He teaches United States history at Yuba Community College.

Military ceremonies will be performed by the Lake County Military Honors Team.

Miss Lake County 2010 Lauren Berlinn will sing the National Anthem.

The public also is welcome to attend the annual luncheon, taking place at Woody’s Café Grill & Pub, 3555 N. Main St., Kelseyville.

A tri-tip buffet lunch will be served at noon. Cost is $15. Reservations are requested by Dec. 2.

For more information and lunch reservations, call Janeane Bogner at 707-998-3280.    

KELSEYVILLE, Calif. – Lake County’s winegrape growers are optimistic about this year’s harvest yields, and wineries appear to be happy with the quality, growers from throughout the county are reporting.

While the annual harvest of smaller and larger vineyards is completed, some varietals earlier than others, the Lake County Winegrape Commission is hearing from growers that the quantity of winegrapes may be less than anticipated but the quality is promising to be better than average.

Speaking about Beckstoffer Vineyards’ Sauvignon Blanc, Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon crops from the Red Hills appellation, Vineyard Operations Manager Randy Krag said, “Overall, we’ll be very close to target with the yields, and the quality is excellent this year.”

He attributed the good harvest in part to the weather this year and noted that one drawback is that Beckstoffer has had to be “in something of a holding pattern” as it waits for fermenter space to be available because some client wineries have been full with Napa and Sonoma fruit.

“The dry weather up to now has been welcome (in contrast to the last two years), except that (Cabernet) fruit may be losing weight in the dry heat, if we can’t harvest it soon,” Krag said. “We’re irrigating later and longer than normal for this time of year, trying to keep the vines maturing normally without drying too abruptly. We expect to see wineries pick up their schedule for deliveries from Lake County over the next seven to 10 days, to finish this harvest.”

Beckstoffer has more than 850 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard in Lake County.

“I guess one of our biggest disadvantages is our own success: wineries have learned that the quality of Lake County Cabernet holds out late into the fall better than other areas, so they tend to push us down the priority list as they concentrate elsewhere in the state,” said Krag.

Beckstoffer finished harvest of its Sauvignon Blanc “some weeks ago,” Krag said.

The 70 acres of the Sauvignon Blanc is planted in locations where frost occurs early in the season. It ripens early and the vintner gets it off the vine before a freeze, he added.

As for the 23 acres of Malbec, Krag said, “It is a little earlier than Cabernet, and harvest is finished there, with very good quality. The Malbec finally set a good crop after several years of light crops, so wineries and grower were happy about that.”

Malbec proved to be good for St. Oloff Vineyard, as well, according to Cindy Oloff.

“We’ve never had such a good Malbec,” she said, adding that it is difficult to grow.

The weather helped, she added, helping to produce a nice Barbera crop, too. Although the Barbera “is less than usual” in quantity, it “still cropped fine.”

St. Oloff Vineyard, located near Lampson Field off Highland Springs Road in Lakeport, is 17 acres of Malbec, Barbera and Nebbiolo grapes. Oloff noted that the Nebbiolo was ripening at a slower rate than usual.

“Everybody was talking about an early harvest but sugars plateaued,” said Oloff. For all the varietals, “the fruit looks good; wineries are happy,” she added.

Hawk and Horse Vineyards near Middletown also experienced a successful season, according to co-owner Tracey Hawkins.

She reported that harvest for Petit Verdot, Petite Syrah and Cabernet Franc started in late September.

“The fruit came in at just around 25 degrees brix – perfect!” she shared in an online announcement. “Cabernet Sauvignon from the 10-acre bowl came in on Sept. 27, perfectly ripened in our biodynamic vineyard.”

In Upper Lake, winegrapes from the Robinson Lake Vineyards are showing “above average” quality and quantity, according to vineyard manager and winemaker Jonathan Walters.

“What a wonderful relief it has been this growing season from the past couple of growing seasons. Mother Nature has been very kind and hasn't caused too many challenges,” he said.

Walters’ vineyards yield Petite Sirah, Merlot and Chardonnay from a total of 68 acres.

“We are looking forward to tasting our labor of love in a glass very soon,” the Lake County Winegrape Commission board member added.

Lake County vineyard acreage remains steady at about 8,500 acres, and this year’s winegrape harvest is expected to be valued at $35 million to $40 million.

For more information, visit the Lake County Winegrape Commission Web site at www.lakecountywinegrape.org .