Bernard Louis "Bernie" Marcus

Born June 14, 1927, Died August 20, 2014

A wit, a writer, an artist, an entrepreneur, a voracious reader and an animal lover, he loved life to the end! Born on Flag Day in 1927 in Chicago, Ill. to Gussie and Oscar Marcus. Preceded in death by his wife (and high school sweetheart) H. Louise, his parents, his brothers Arthur and Raymond and their wives, his brother Buddy who died in infancy, and his son Donald. Survived by his living children Bonnie Graybill, Leonard Marcus and Sally Rodeman, his grandchildren Micah and Kira Graybill; and Ashley, Todd and Aaron Marcus. Bernie left high school early to join the Navy towards the end of World War II, and served at Great Lakes Naval Station. He graduated from the University of Illinois, and for a time attended the University of Chicago, Graduate School of Business. A partner in the Marcus Brush Company, in 1962, he threw caution to the wind and moved his family to the beauty and perfect weather of Santa Barbara. Bernie owned and operated Fritz's Patio and Garden Store until his retirement in 1995. After his wife's death and some health challenges of his own, Bernie moved to Sacramento near his daughter Bonnie in 2004. Bernie always found time for creative endeavors like cartooning, playing the organ and creative writing, leaving behind boxes of stories, including some published on the occasion of his 75th birthday in This I Believe. He was a Toastmaster for many years in Santa Barbara. Extracted from a poem Bernie wrote in 2000, and presented to his friends in Toastmasters, "My Last Request - When my last breath has been drawn and I'm laid to rest, I implore you my children, don't cry or beat your breast - my spirit will live on - an empty shell is buried - the spirit soars upward to receive God's grace." Displaying his typical humor, the closing lines of his speech are "Regardless of the promises of a better life, I'm not in a hurry to get off the train." He goes on to describe in detail how he will let his children care for him in old age.

Bernie will be buried next to his wife at the Goleta Cemetery, 44 S. San Antonio Road, Santa Barbara, CA on Monday August 25, 2014, at 1 PM. In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to your preferred charity.