• Aunt Berne went to Disney World when it first opened and loved it so much that she decided that she would take each of her niblings to Disney. And she did. Went bankrupt doing so, but she took all fifteen of us and paid for everything. She wisely waited until each were about ten or eleven years old; she rationalised that at that age, one was still young enough to enjoy everything and be mature enough to behave properly, do as they are told, and not whine while waiting in line for the rides. In 1986 it was me, my cousin Jennifer, Godmommy Gina, and Aunt Berne who went to the funnest place for any kid of any age. It was the best time of my entire childhood. (Right up there with swinging on swingsets!!)
• After Aunt Berne's eye surgery (she was the first person any of us knew that had laser eye surgery to be able to see without glasses for the first time since childhood), she came with the fam to Peddler's Village in Pennsylvania. We were walking up the hill to some antique barn place and she must have mentioned how those huge dark glasses she had to wear made everything too dark. I, being a weirdo, did my Al Pacino Scent of a Woman impression and at the top of my lungs shouted "I'M IN THE DAHK HEEH!" She kept cracking up and had to hold on to me for support. She has always been such a hoot to hang out with.
• Back in the 80s and then in the 90s with Xavier, Aunt Berne was our babysitter and we couldn't wait for the weekends when my parents would go out and we'd get to spend time with our favourite person. Creatures of habit, we would always hit Little Caesar's Pizza Pizza plus the bonus of some crazy bread on the side. Result! Then back home to watch a movie together and just hang out. Core memories!
• Waiting at the corner - Growing up, we would often visit my mother's family in the city. They lived in the middle of a block of rowhomes and when we would leave, we'd have to drive around the block and come to a stop sign at the end of their street. Every time without fail, my Aunt Bernadette would walk down and be waiting at the corner stop sign to give my oldest brother and I one last wave goodbye. It was so simple but it remains one of my fondest childhood memories.
• For fifteen or so years, Xavier and I would go with Aunt Berne, and later with Aunt Gina and Alina, to the Windridge Tree Farm to cut down the tree for Berne and also sometimes a little one for Aunt Peg. They had the best hot cocoa ever and it became a fun little Christmas tradition. The most memorable year for all of us was the one where the car got stuck in the mud. Me and Xavier plus several of the men from the tree farm lined up across the rear of the car and gave the old girl a shove. I vividly remember seeing the wheel start to dig out and the mud that was flicking on my pants. "Uh oh..." I thought. But I couldn't give up so I pushed like hell and we got the car on solid ground. I knew I was covered waist to toe with mud, as was Xavier, who was behind the other wheel looked like my mirror image. I stood by the driver's side as Berne hopped out to cheer us on our efforts and thank the workmen. Then she saw me and nearly busted a gut laughing. It was hysterical.
• I wanna say it was my 9th birthday that Aunt Berne bought me a pin-up poster of Tom Selleck clad in all denim. It hung on the wall behind my bedroom door for years and years and somewhere, I still have it. Selleck is Berne's ideal man and he was my first celebrity crush. When I was six or maybe just turned seven, Mum, me, and Aunt Berne went to, I believe, the old Eric Theatre in Moorestown to see High Road to China on the big screen. It felt so great to be invited with the "big girls" to see a grown-up movie starring the dreamiest man ever. Aunt Berne influenced my continuing love of handsome dark haired men with fab facial hair.
• Her skills as a gift wrapper were unmatched and the very definition of exquisite. Unique paper, intricate bows, and at Christmas one year there was a large violin ornament tied in with the bow. It was so gorgeous I didn't want to open it. She is a true artist.
• Her legendary Disney faux pas in '86. She went to snap a pic of me and Jenny in the bathroom in our towels and didn't realise that her reflection in the mirror showed her in just in jeans and a bra!
• Easily the most generous person I've ever known. Generous of her time, money, and mostly of her emotions. Whenever something good happens, Berne is the one you want to tell because she will be over-the-moon excited and gives the best reactions. Her response to "Aunt Berne, I found a quarter outside my apartment!" will be as energetic as "Aunt Berne, I'm getting married!" She is without question the most joyful person I know.
• I always said that Aunt Berne was like James Garner's character in The Great Escape; she was the scrounger and could find anything. In 1993 she asked me what I wanted for Christmas and I told her I wanted the toy frog in the bathtub scene in Dennis the Menace. No surprise, it turned up among my gifties that December. There's nothing this woman couldn't accomplish, especially if it was for any of us kids.
• Growing up was tough, especially age nine through high school, and let's face it, even now, and Aunt Berne was that one person who never judged or looked down on or showed frustration at or ever made me feel anything less than wonderful. She was always supportive and loving and fun and embraced my silliness and weirdness. It's a rare thing to have someone love you like that and her unconditional love is something I am so grateful to have and to return to her because she really is the world's greatest auntie/babysitter.
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