Name: Celebration of Life for John Berkley
Start: 2015-10-25T17:00:00.000Z
End: 2015-10-25T20:00:00.000Z
Location: West Village Meetinghouse, All Souls Unitarian Church

John "Jack" D. Berkley Jr.

1925 - 2015 WESTMINSTER, VT. John D. Berkley Jr., (Jack) 90, died peacefully Wednesday October 21, 2015. Jack was born Aug. 29, 1925 in New York City, the son of John D. and Elizabeth (Doyle) Berkley. He is survived by his wife of 23 years, Judith (Gellert) Berkley, two daughters, Lisa (and John) Boydstun of Galesburg, IL and Tamara (and Michael) Purcell of Marlboro, VT, a stepdaughter, Noel Hoffmann of Stratton, and four grandchildren, Taylor, Ian and Devon Boydstun, and Giovana Purcell. He is preceded in death by his parents and his ex-wife, Margaret (Ovington) Berkley whom he married in 1953. Jack was raised in Philadelphia, PA and attended Temple University. He fell in love with Vermont after organizing ski trips to Mount Snow. In 1961 he and his family moved to Wilmington, VT to own and operate The Vermont House, a country inn. He worked in real estate for R.J. Fisher of Brattleboro before opening his own firm, Berkley & Veller Realtors with his partner, Jack Veller in 1963. This successful partnership continued for 20 years. During this time Jack served as President of the Vermont Association of Realtors, director of the National Association of Realtors and had the distinction of being elected as Realtor of the Year for the state of Vermont. In 1990 Jack merged Berkley & Veller with Judith Gellert's Greenwood Country Realtors to create the current business of Berkley & Veller Greenwood Country Realtors, the largest independent firm in southern Vermont. Jack was an outgoing, gregarious person who made friends easily wherever he went. He and his wife, Judith, loved to travel and had amazing adventures together all over the world. He enjoyed history, politics, skiing, sailing and spending time with his family. He celebrated his 90th birthday this summer in true "Jack style" with lots of parties! SERVICES: A Celebration of Life gathering will be held Sunday, October 25, 2015 at West Village Meetinghouse, All Souls Unitarian Church in West Brattleboro from 1 to 4p.m. All are welcome. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Jack Berkley's memory may be made to the Brattleboro Museum and Art Center, the Windham County Humane Society or a charity of the donor's choice. Atamaniuk Funeral Home is working together with the family to handle all arrangements.

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Published by Brattleboro Reformer on Oct. 22, 2015.

Memories and Condolences
for John Berkley

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5 Entries

Steven K-Brooks

October 24, 2015

Jack was warm, empathetic, and supportive.

It has been said that people will not remember what someone did for them as much as how that person made you feel. Jack made me feel respected, and appreciated.

My condolences to everyone who loved Jack Berkley.

Brian Ireland

October 23, 2015

Like so many of my friends, I will always treasure my time with Jack. A good person with a wonderful attitude, his unbridled curiosity always inspired me. Unfortunately , I was not aware his health had turned for the worse and I did not see him to say goodbye.....I'll always have a place in my heart for you old friend, great love and peace to you and yours. Brian Ireland

Steph Peduzzi-Baker

October 22, 2015

Jack Berkley was not only a smart business man, he was loving and he was funny and he cared. In the eight years I have worked for Jack, he showed nothing less than full encouragement, commitment, and kindness toward me and my co-agents at Berkley Veller. We were treated as family. Jack had a wonderful sense of humor and great personal style. He adored my previous dog, Austin and my current dog, Hershi and welcomed them to the office at all times. We shared a love of sweets- cookies and chocolate! My heart breaks at the loss of this special, special man. He means so much to so many. I am a better person for knowing him. I love you, Jack!

Doug Archard

October 22, 2015

Jack and I had many adventures together, starting when our combined ages were over 130 years. Among many others,these included canoeing the Connecticut River from Canada to Long Island Sound and sailing Lake Champlain from Canada to Whitehall. Most were fun, some were most arduous, one was a disaster. Throughout, Jack always maintained good spirits, a cool demeanor (once despite a fast-approaching, life threatening, rocky lee shore), and never lost his temper at my bad judgment.

Jack was a great friend who was full of good stories, often told over a glass or two of Jameson's whiskey. (Proud of his Irish ancestry, he always pronounced it Jam- eson's.)

Please drink a glass of Jammie (another name for it) or a martini to a good man who lived a long and productive life and made a ton of friends along the way.

The Staff of Atamaniuk Funeral Home

October 22, 2015

Offering our deepest condolences during this time.

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