Bernarr E. Schaeffer

Bernarr Edward Schaeffer, "Bern," passed away at home in Rosendale on Tuesday, January 6, 2026, at age 74. He was born in Newark, NJ, on January 7, 1951. Bern's father and mother were Bernarr Charles Schaeffer and Ruth Anderegg Schaeffer, and he had four siblings, Jim, Jay, Wayne and John.

Bern grew up as a quick-witted, creative and physically agile child. He did well in school without trying and naturally gravitated to playing competitive sports. In high school varsity sports he played point guard in basketball, center halfback in soccer and shortstop in baseball, and was always one to watch due to his tremendous speed. At SUNY New Paltz, Bern played the forward position in soccer, and in 1969 travelled with the team to play top European squads in exhibition games in Portugal, Belgium, France and England. Bern was the highest scorer on the team for the trip and it was a memorable highlight in his life. Bern attended ten semesters at SUNY New Paltz, studying a number of subjects, and was always an immensely curious and self-educated person in addition to formal schooling.

After college, Bern lived in High Falls with long-time companion, Bettye Chaney. He was self-employed and always kept active with athletics. He played high-level amateur soccer, hockey and baseball locally, often participating with brothers Jay and John in soccer. One year Bern won the batting title and most valuable player in the Hudson Valley Rookie League, the highest level amateur league in the Hudson Valley. In his last twenty-five years Bern took up table tennis, joining best friends, David Jones and Robert Euvino, and predictably excelled in that as well. He kept up long distance running and bicycling into his early '70s.

Bern was a Renaissance man who, in addition to all of his athletic activities and successes, was amazingly productive in the creative arts. In the 1980s and 90s he did an intense study of the ideas and works of Buckminster Fuller. With brother, Jim, he wrote three articles for Dome magazine inspired by and building on Bucky's ideas about dome and cylinder-shaped optimized manufactured dwelling units. Bern and Jim also collaborated on a unique tensegrity sculpture they called "Emergence by Emergency" that was included in a Bucky Fuller celebration at the 20th anniversary of Earth Day event at Bard College called "Harmonizing Nature, Humanity and Technology." Bern and Jim met Bucky's long-time architect Thomas Zung at the sculpture and Zung praised the sculpture.

In the 2000s, Bern formed an original rock band with brother, Jim, and friend and excellent drummer, Mark Bartle, called "Hungry Ghost." Bern was the primary composer and lead singer for seven albums worth of original recorded music with the band during that decade. Their gigs in Rosendale and Kerhonkson were special events. Bern played bass, keyboards, guitar and flute, and had a high clear voice. After that Bern had an "unplugged" original music trio with brothers Jim and John that was very productive as well.

Over the decades, Bern created hundreds of amazing drawings, paintings and carved wood sculptures. Particularly, in his last two years of life, he created a huge number of beautiful and endlessly varied oil pastel paintings and colored pen drawings on a single theme of "warrior man," inspired by best friend, David Jones, an acupuncturist. His creative output during 2025, alone, while he battled cancer mightily, almost defies belief. Indeed, during the last two days of Bern's life, David was reading Bern's recently written novel," Vesalius," to him. The Renaissance man characterization of Bern is and was no exaggeration. A fiercely independent thinker, Bern always lived with intense purpose. He will be missed and remembered always by family and friends.

Bern is survived by brother Jim of Rosendale, NY, brother Jay (Nancy), of Cary, NC, brother Wayne (Lori), of Stone Ridge, NY, uncle David Anderegg (Gloria), of Port Ewen, NY and many nieces and nephews. He was predeceased by mother Ruth Anderegg Schaeffer in 1985, father Bernarr C. Schaeffer in 2021, and brother John Schaeffer in 2022.

A memorial service is to be held sometime this spring or summer timed with brother Jim's completion of Bern's magnum opus kinetic sculpture design called "Musical Fountain." For more info, contact Jim at JamesSchaeffer531@proton.me. www.GJMoylanFuneralHome.com