Jean Willard Bernard

Jean W. Bernard, age 89, of Rochester, MN, passed away on August 13th at The Benedict House (Madonna Towers) in Rochester, Minnesota. Jean was born on July 25, 1928 in Grafton, ND to Joseph and Delia (LeClair) Bernard. He attended primary and secondary school in Grafton, and joined the Marine Corps after High School. He was stationed on the USS Bairko after deployment and learned to service and replace radios in Corsair F4U-4 fighter aircraft. After an honorable discharge from the Marines he used his military benefits to earn an electronics degree with emphasis in radio repair from the Wahpeton State School of Science. He joined Minnkota Power Cooperative in Grand Forks and became their main radio technician, later earning the rank of communications engineer for the cooperative. Jean married Anne Anderson in 1949 and together they had 4 children, LauraJean Lukes(Frank), Jon Bernard (Carola), Nancy Bensley (Alan) and MaryAnn Bernard. They divorced in 1972 after 25 years of marriage. He was re-married to Mildred Jensen in 1974 until her death in 1999. His last wife was Irene Buckley who he married in 2002 but lost to cancer in 2008. Jean was an avid outdoorsman and loved taking his family on remote camping and fishing trips to Canada and Northern Minnesota. He hunted moose in Northern Manitoba for 25 years with 3 of his work associates from Minnkota Power and together they harvested many trophy moose. He could be found in duck sloughs during waterfowl season chasing mallards and teal. His handyman training followed him everywhere and he serviced appliances and equipment of all types for himself and friends. Bird watching, feeding birds and tending his flower gardens were all hobbies he especially enjoyed. Jean lived his retired life at his Maple Lake cottage in Minnesota during Spring and Summer, and spent Winters in his Yuma, AZ home where he tended orange trees and flowers in his yard and played golf as much as possible. Jean moved to Madonna Towers in Rochester, Minnesota in 2011 when his health started to fail. He lived there until his death. Jean is survived by his children and 2 step-sons Rodney (Vicky) Jensen, and Ron (Becky) Jensen, 15 grandchildren and 23 great- grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his parents Joseph and Delia Bernard, 3 brothers Ray, Dewey and Vernon Bernard, a sister Geraldine, 2 step-sons Roger and Russel Jensen, and by two wives Mildred (Jensen) Bernard and Irene (Buckley) Bernard. Funeral arrangements are being handled by Ranfranz and Vine Funeral Homes in Rochester, Minnesota, www.ranfranzandvinefh.com. A memorial Mass will be held at Madonna Towers on Thursday, August 17th at 11AM followed by a lunch in the dining room. He will be buried next to Mildred (Jensen) Bernard at Memorial Park Cemetery in Grand Forks, North Dakota on Tuesday, August 22 at 11 AM with his daughter Rev. MaryAnn Bernard officiating. The family requests no flowers and any memorial contributions be made to Mayo Clinic Alzheimers research, www.mayoclinic.org.