Bernadette Margaret Grazier

Bernadette M. Grazier was a woman of 92, wife of Guy Grazier, mother of Kimberly, Kyle, Karla and Kelli; sister of Kathryn, Alfred, Bernard, and Dorothy, and daughter of Margaret and Frank.

From her youth on a farm in Minnesota, she knew the value of family, hard work, and caring. She and Guy, her loving partner for almost 50 years for ice skating, pinochle, roller skating and Halloween  costumes extraordinaire, showed their daughters the importance of being there for one another. They welcomed grandchildren into their lives by going and helping where and when needed for as long as needed.

She was of the generation who believed in taking personal responsibility for family and their communities. She took in typing for the board of accounts while her first 3 daughters were very young.  She broke through gender barriers long before there were others to support her, and she was  brave in seeking employment in new settings with new responsibilities. While working full time in the summers, she would run home to have lunch and take her daughters to the public pool. And by 5, she would be home to prepare dinner for her family, with healthy food each meal on a $25 weekly budget. She was known for her pies, blueberry pancakes, tapioca, and fat noodles.

As her children grew, she worked full time as a business office manager; clients knew that if they wanted the right equipment, on time, they would talk to “Bernie” rather than a sales rep. She won a national award for her sales, even though she was not the salesperson.

Later in life, she took night and weekend classes in real estate while she worked full time, and quickly built a loyal clientele who trusted her and valued her skill and knowledge. She was a “million dollar” saleswoman many years running.

She was always fun. She loved a day of fishing, and a night of dancing, singing while her sister played piano, and being part of her brothers’ stories of their escapades as adults and children. She was a trickster, and with Guy, became famous for pranks on family and friends. She was quick to laugh and to hug.

She encouraged her daughters to be wise, independent, caring, and to fight for their beliefs. They knew that she was always there for them when they needed her.

Bernadette’s legacy of love remains with her daughters and her daughters’ husbands Mike, Ward, and Jerry; her grandchildren Michael, Shannon, Guy, Max, Alex, Gabe, Morgan, Abigail, Nicholas, and Elijah and step-grandchildren Shawn and Sarah; great grandchildren Jacob, Joanna, Joseph, James and step-great grandchildren David and Annibelle; and great great grandchild Charlotte.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations in honor of Bernadette Grazier to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place. Memphis, TN 38105.