Jose Bonilla

Jose Luis (Ciraco) Bonilla, also known as Joseph to his friends, was born April 5, 1954, in Managua, Nicaragua to Sonia and Jose Ciraco Bonilla.

He is survived by his two sisters and brother; Sandra Salierno, Lisette Saravia and Alex Sierra.  He also fathered two children, Liza and Shari, both of whom reside in Florida.

Jose immigrated to the United States in 1970 with his immediate family.  After sometime in New York City, he settled in Florida and relocated to Lafayette Louisiana in the late 1990’s - early 2000’s. He was a jack of all trades, and worked as a nation-wide truck driver and a rigger in the Gulf of Mexico.  He enjoyed telling a good story, listening and making music, warmer weather and the company of his friends.  Although he bragged about being a member of the US Armed Forces, sadly, Jose never served.

Jose suffered a head injury on October 6, 2018 at a music festival in Lafayette, and subsequently died on November 17, 2018. His death was directly related to a life-long struggle with alcohol abuse. He struggled with addiction for most of his life and went to multiple treatment facilities, achieving sobriety for various lengths of time before relapsing. In the last few months of his life he was sober, and his family is grateful that he died peacefully with his sisters by his side. "We take comfort in knowing that he is surrounded by light, free from the struggle that haunted him. We would have given anything for him to experience that freedom in this lifetime."