Bernice Louise Fitzpatrick

1930 - 2023

ELLICOTTVILLE - Bernice Louise Siebart Fitzpatrick, 93, of Ellicottville, passed away Thursday (March 30, 2023) at her home, surrounded by her loving family.

She was born Jan. 18, 1930, in Arnold, Pa., daughter of the late Frank and Marie Crosby Siebart.

She met the love of her life, Dana G. Fitzpatrick, skiing at Greer Hill in Ellicottville. They fell in love on a ski trip in Aspen, Colo. Dana and Bernice were married Dec. 28, 1955, and made Ellicottville their home. Dana predeceased her Dec. 18, 2020, 10 days shy of their 65th wedding anniversary.

Bernice graduated from Bradford (Pa.) High School in 1947, where she led the marching band as a drum majorette for three years. She was proud to have been voted Best Actress of her senior class.

After high school, she worked as a legal secretary at McDowell & McDowell law firm in Bradford.

She was very independent for a woman of that era and, at the age of 21, she took a bus to Boston, Mass., without a job or a place to live. She lived at the YMCA until she found a job working as an assistant to an economics professor at Harvard. Later, she worked as a legal secretary for Foley, Hoag, and Elliot in Boston.

She had fond memories of working as a lifeguard at Allegany State Park for several summers while working at a law firm in Buffalo the rest of the year. She was also an assistant to Mrs. Helen Neville, who was the first woman to have her own TV show in Buffalo. She later worked at Fitzpatrick & Weller in Ellicottville for several years, where she was also a shareholder.

Bernice loved caring for the elderly. She had many friends who predeceased her who she visited in the nursing home and ran errands for on a weekly basis. She volunteered at the Salamanca hospital. She was fiercely devoted to her family. She was a member of Holy Name of Mary Church and the Ellicottville Ski Club for several years.

Bernice is survived by two sons, Daniel (Nancy) Fitzpatrick and Gregory (Ann Marie) Fitzpatrick, both of Ellicottville; three daughters, Marcia (Jim Zaepfel) Fitzpatrick of Williamsville, Kerry (Michael) Allison of Saratoga Springs and Dr. Sheila Fitzpatrick of Vail, Colo.; 10 grandchildren, Maggie, Stephen (Natalee), Charles, Brendan, Kailey, Annie Meghan, Melanie, Connor, Dana and Christina; four great-grandchildren, Carter, Henry, Hallie and Braden; a sister-in-law, Kathleen Widger, of Allegany; and several nieces and nephews.

Besides her husband and parents, she was predeceased by an infant son, Steven Fitzpatrick; two sisters, Marjorie Alsdorf and Zelma Boss; and one brother, Frank Siebart II.

We wish to thank and acknowledge the recent caregiving team who were so loving and devoted to Bernice's care at her home: Tracie Flagg, Nancy Fuller, Ping Munzert, Tabitha Flagg, Samantha Wilcox, Molly Rissmiller, Nicole Lewis, Amy Yeager and Mindy Yeager. We are also grateful for the past caregivers as well.

A Catholic funeral Mass will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Saturday, June 3, 2023, at Holy Name of Mary Church, Ellicottville. A Celebration of Life for both Dana and Bernice will be held at Holiday Valley Resort immediately following the mass.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Bernice's name to the Ellicottville Memorial Library, P.O. Box 1226, Ellicottville, NY 14731.

Arrangements are under the direction of Mentley Funeral Home Inc., 411 Rock City St., in Little Valley.