Martin Berdinis

BERDINIS, MARTIN, 67 - of Margate, passed away Sunday after a year long battle with cancer. Born in Philadelphia, he spent his childhood living in Longport and Ventnor before moving to the "Ducktown" section of Atlantic City. He graduated from ACHS in 1955 and served in the U.S. Air Force at Seymour Johnson AFB in Goldsboro, NC until 1959. After Honorable Discharge, he returned to the area with his wife and two infant children settling in Margate. He was a member of Beth El Synagogue. Mr. Berdinis owned Kandy Korner in Atlantic City until his retirement in 1984. One of his grea pleasures when he owned the store was providing personal tours of his factory each year to thousands of area children. He loved to see the joy on their faces as they learned how candy canes and chocolate snowmen were made. In 1984, he closed the store, retired and fulfilled a dream by attending college. He maintained a 4.0 average while earning his Associates Degree in Psychology from ACC ('86) and his BA from Richard Stockton State College ('88). He then earned his Master's from Widener University ('89). He immediately began a second career, this time in education, becoming a Senior Adjunct Professor for the Psychology departments at ACCC and Stockton. The tremendous care he displayed for his students was evident in every class he taught. Though a very humble man, his teaching efforts were recently honored when he was awarded the first ever Adjunct Teaching Excellence Award at ACCC. He also was just honored as the eighth recipient of the Richard Stockton College Distinguished Psychology Alunmi Award. His other achievements included volunteerism. He was a blood donor at the American Red Cross, he raised money for the ACMC Hospice by putting together benefit concerts and was the head usher for Beth Judah Synagogue for many years. However, he was probably best known on a local level for his generosity in helping his friends, family and neighbors. Whatever their need, Martin would drop everything to help someone with a project or a problem always placing others' needs before his own. He is pre-deceased by his parents Jacob and Ethel Berardinis. He is survived and will be sadly missed by his wife of 49 years, Hennie (Rosenthal), his children, Steve (Susan) of Houston, Michele (Barry) Fagin of Colorado Springs and Charles "Chip" (Ruth) of Grand Island, NY. He is also survived by seven grandchildren-Max and Erica Fagin, Alex, Eric and Cody Berdinis and Catherine and Carissa Finger. Services will be held at Beth El Synagogue on Monday September 19 at 2:30 p.m. Interment will be held immediately following services at Beth Kehillah Cemetery in Egg Harbor Township. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made ACMS Hospice or Beth El Synagogue. Arrangements by Roth-Goldsteins' Memorial, Atlantic City. ?? ?? ?? ??