John F. Bernier

John Frederick Bernier, 77, of Palmer Twp., passed away peacefully at home on December 29, 2021. He was the beloved husband of Kathleen “Kathy” M. (Bausinger) Bernier with whom he shared over 56 years of loving marriage. Born on January 16, 1944, in Syracuse, NY, he was the son of the late Archibald and Edna (Damanski) Bernier.

John was employed by PricewaterhouseCoopers as a C.P.A from 1965 – 1999 and made Partner in 1977. He was a member of St. Janes Frances deChantal Church, Easton and a former member of St. John’s Church, East Stroudsburg. John was a chairman of St. John’s Church Classic Golf Tournament for many years and volunteered with Meals on Wheels. An avid golfer, a bad day of golf was better than a good day of anything else, but his favorites were Great Bear Golf Club in Stroudsburg, PA, and the Venetian Golf Club in Venice FL. He was a repeat champion of the famous “Ham Open” an eagerly anticipated annual family event in which the prize was a coveted Canadian canned ham from the late 1980’s.

John (Jack) to friends and family, was a storyteller extraordinaire, and when he launched in, you didn’t know till the end whether he was sharing a true experience, or a hilarious joke.  He had a love/hate relationship with the Syracuse Orange (mostly love), but based on his armchair coaching, he could have won a lot more games than Coach Mac.

But above all, he adored his family, especially his wife, and cherished his time spent with his children and grandchildren.  There was never a day in his presence without laughter or love.

He coined the phrase, “Watch Out For the Yahoos!” as the last thing he would say before we walked out the door, which, depending on the situation meant “Be careful of bad drivers” or “Make good choices when you go out tonight” or “I love you more than life itself”. His family will use this phrase in perpetuity.

Survivors: John will be lovingly remembered by his wife Kathy; daughters, Lisa Dubreuil and husband Thomas and his daughter Karen Dodge and husband Elston; grandchildren, Jack Dubreuil and Megan and Samuel Dodge. He was predeceased by sister, Carole Holland.

Services: A Mass of Christian Burial will take place at 10:30 A.M. on Thursday, January 6, 2022 at St. Jane Frances de Chantal Church, 4049 Hartley Ave, Easton where the family will receive friends and relatives from 9:30 A.M. until the time of service. The family kindly requests everyone in attendance to please wear a facial covering. Arrangements have been entrusted to the Cantelmi Long Funeral Home, Bethlehem. A memory tribute may be placed at www.cantelmifuneralhome.com.

Contributions: In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in John’s memory to Monroe County Meals on Wheels at https://www.monroemeals.org/donate/

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