Bernard Caplan

So sorry to belatedly learn of Bernie's departure. He was a valued and memorable colleague. A loyal union man. His memory always inspires a smile.

As a kid growing up in the Indian Hills neighborhood of SW Portland, there was no better place to go during summers or after school than the Caplan's house on Wilbard Street. Brothers Craig and Jeff would be there and Mrs. Caplan would be in the kitchen or doing housework while we played hoops, Atari (first on the block to get one), tennis ball baseball or Nerf football on the street. I remember Mr. Caplan as such a nice guy, so calm -- even the amount of kids surrounding him on Caplan Court...

Bernie was a treasure! I worked with him in Customs and he made time pass much faster with his humor. He was so proud of his sons and brothers. I met them at Nancy's service in 2001 and know they were a blessing to him at that time of sorrow. We had a "standing date" to meet for ice cream to celebrate his birthday but our "retiree schedules" didn't allow that to happen, unfortunately. He never forgot that I treated him to a cone once and always wanted to repeat that gesture.

Boys,
I appreciated your call when Bernie died.

My family was in the wholesale sporting goods business, only a few blocks from Caplan's. Although we never met, I would see him schlep back and forth between the two. We were also classmates at Stanford and never knew him until many years later I finally met him in the pool at the "J". We became good friends with a lot in common to rehash. I Enjoyed his "who cares" humor that often brought on his shrug with its sideways look. I...