DOUGLAS BERNARDY
Douglas Alan Bernardy, 67, passed away on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2024.
The family has planned a private prayer service, and requests a prayer for him in their own place of worship or the comfort of their own home.
A good man with a hearty laugh and stout values, recently celebrated his 47th wedding anniversary with his lovely wife, Gina (Flood).
Doug was born in Marshall, MN, the third oldest of five children; serving as the foundation of his strong ethical character. A tremendous athlete (wrestling, baseball, swimming, and roller-dancing), he worked diligently throughout his life. Aside from a short stint in the Minnesota Army National Guard, Doug enlisted in the Navy in 1973 at the age of 17, courting his hometown sweetheart until their marriage in 1977. His 25 years of military service as a Hull Technician and Radiographic Inspector took him and his growing family around the world to stations in California, Washington, and Guam, until his retirement from active duty as an instructor in Great Lakes, Illinois. A proud Navy Veteran, he began his new career as an Industrial Radiologist and Radiation Safety Officer at MetalTek in Wisconsin, inspecting critical components of the NASA Space Shuttles and satellites, civilian aircraft, and stadium infrastructure for faults in the metallurgy. Doug worked another 20 years there until his retirement in 2018, and moved from their home in Kenosha, WI, to reside closer to their daughter, Angela, and her family in Mount Zion, Illinois, as she embarked on her career as an operating room nurse while visiting their son Nick and his family at their various assignments in Hawaii, Tennessee, Alabama, and North Carolina for the Army. A proud military family, Doug witnessed his son, son-in-law, and two granddaughters serve the country he so cherished and lived to uphold its values.
Doug took great pleasure in spending time with his family, using his deadpan stoicism to prank those he loved most, only to erupt in uproarious laughter. His favorite holiday was Thanksgiving, when family would gather at the table, delight in sharing stories, and savor a home-cooked country meal. Each morning Papa would cook breakfast for his grandchildren and send them off to school, and adored doting on his playful dog, Eddie, as they played fetch every day. Doug recently purchased a convertible car, and reminisced more youthful days of riding his Harley-Davidson motorcycle. For years he looked forward to the traditional gift of Harley shirts purchased for him from locations along their travels, always on their mind. Pa also enjoyed watching NASCAR, football, documentaries, and murder mystery programs.
From the very beginning until the very end, Doug was a devoted family man with firm values, a tremendous work ethic, and a formidable protector of those he loved. Despite his gruff exterior, once he got to know you and accept you as his own, his fervor was unmatched, and his joy in witnessing your success unparalleled. He will be deeply missed.
The family expresses its deepest gratitude to the staff at Barnes-Jewish Hospital Cardiovascular Division in St. Louis for the incredible care of Pa and for their pastoral gift of his last heartbeat, so inscribed, “Each of us has a different rhythm, a different heartbeat and life. May this be a reminder of the rhythm and life that your loved one lived.” Doug’s last gift was in tissue donation through the Gift of Hope, where he will live on in restoring hearing to deaf children, and help crush and burn victims; a small portion of what his donation is capable of. We take comfort in knowing we all have another fierce guardian angel protecting us from above.
Doug is survived by his wife, Gina, daughter Angela (Christopher) Thunder, and their children, Michelle, Catherine, Alyssa, Dylan, and Dalton; and his son Nick (Samantha) Bernardy, and their children Kaylee (Jake Holverson), Kennedy, and Spencer; as well as his brothers Jeff, Jim, and Scott.
He is preceded in death by his mother, Darlene (Craig); father, Randy; and baby sister, Jeannie.