Bernard Anthony Berger

Bernard Anthony Berger, 72, of Navasota, Texas passed away on July 2, 2024, at St Joseph’s Hospital in Bryan, Texas. We lost a beloved man who filled many roles including husband, father, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother, uncle, and friend. Bernard was known for his many gifts and his ability to empathize with and support others. He was such a creative and thoughtful planner and problem solver. He left behind several pages of project lists and the supplies and tools to complete nearly all of them!

Bernard was born on September 29, 1951, to Barney and Betty (DeMoss) Berger and resided in the Houston area for the majority of his life. Bernard was blessed with 4 wonderful younger sisters, Nancy Winter, Cindy Bolin, Delores Berger, and Connie Manuel, who made family life very interesting for their older brother and vice versa! Bernard was exposed to music through the frequent celebrations and gatherings held by his extended family that stretched through the Brenham/Anderson/Houston area. He started playing music in local clubs long before he graduated from Reagan High School in Houston in 1969 where he thrived in Radio and TV classes. Although he liked rock and roll music, the bands for whom he played the drums brought him into the country music world of the late 60’s and early 70’s. He played in clubs all over Texas and as far away as the Golden Nugget in Las Vegas. The roles of husband and father soon pulled him toward more traditional occupations including disc jockey, TV repair, telecommunications (Houston Cellular-Cingular-AT&T), and finally as a successful entrepreneur building and running a full-service car wash.

Bernard’s marriage to Tanna (DeMottier) Lively, was blessed by his treasured daughter and only child, Tammy (Buddy) Martin, who provided him with two lovely granddaughters, Rachelle (Mike) Adams and Lacey (Tatum) Schultz. Rachelle and her husband presented Bernard with two beautiful great-grandchildren, Everley and Baker Adams.

In 2001 Bernard met and later married Julie Ann Barrett becoming stepfather to her three children, Michelle, Doug, and David Heady, son-in-law to Archie and Miriam Barrett, and a treasured member of her extended family. Over the years the family grew to include Michelle’s husband Chris Young, Doug’s wife Melisa (Hinojosa) Heady, and grandchildren Mia and Leo.

Julie and Bernard spent more than 20 years together finishing up their Houston careers and then moving to Coldspring and finally to Navasota to create a homestead just south of College Station where Julie teaches at Texas A&M University. Building that homestead provided Bernard with the ultimate opportunity to apply his creative juices to one project after another. He was a magnificent organizer and planner with drawings, lists of materials, and spreadsheets. Bernard and Julie sought to create a place reminiscent of his grandparents’ Anderson farm where family members could gather for years to come doing some of their favorite things—cooking, making sausage, playing games, listening to and playing music, and enjoying the country life. Bernard’s next project with the children in mind was to build a large sandbox where they could dig tunnels and play with trucks in much the same way he remembered doing as a child.

Predeceased by his parents and former wife, Brenda Powell, Bernard’s legacy is carried on by his loving wife, Julie; his daughter, granddaughters, and great grandchildren; his stepchildren; and his sisters, nieces, and nephews.

It was Bernard’s wish to be cremated and have his ashes spread in several special locations. A celebration of Bernard’s life will be held at Julie and Bernard’s homestead at 4 PM in the afternoon of July 28, 2024. Please contact Julie at the email address below for further details. 

Please sign the online guest book and consider sharing a favorite memory of Bernard. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be sent to the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation https://themmrf.org in memory of Bernard. Julie’s email address is julbarrett@gmail.com