Bernard Bender

Bernard Bender was born 10-26-1925 in Brooklyneew York to orthodox??Jewish Eastern European immigrant parents, Robert Bender and Celia??Borodineender. He had one older sister, Lorraine Bruder Roberts, who??predeceased him by one year. He grew up in a Brooklyn house subdivided??into apartments where all his neighbors in the building were his mother???s??sisters and their families, so his first cousins were like siblings to him. After??serving in the Navy at the end of WWII, Mr Bender studied engineering and??maneement at Hofstra Uneersity. His adventurous spirit aneenormous??self-confidence first took him out of Brooklyn to Plaineew, New York on Long??Island first, which at that time was still mostly rural and considered to be??another world by the rest of his family. After Long Island he took new jobs??or promotioneevery two to three years to take oneew challenges. He??moved to Allentown, PA, Wheeling, WV, Cleveland & Beachwood, OH,??LaCrosse, WI, and Jacksonville, NC before settling in Fayetteville and Durham, NC. He began his career in the garment industry by doing time-study and??quality-control work for a manufacturing plant in Allentown, PA. As his??career progressed, he was promoted to positions with ineeasing levels of??responsibility, from managing a sinee manufacturing plant, to managing??several plants at once, then to managing the production of garments in a??whole region of the country, and finally brought into corporate headquarters??as a national director and corporate Vice President. After he learned??everything he needed, he moved to NC to start his own apparel??manufacturing business near Fayetteville, NC. He operated and grew that??business until he retired. Whenee retired, he and his wife moved in as one??of the first group of residents to ???The Forest at Duke??? retirement community??in Durham and lived there for over 25 years. He spent his last few years caring for his wife Marion, who became??ineeasingly unable to care for herself after a major stroke. They moved??together into the skilled nursing wing of the Forest community and insisted??on staying together even though at that time Bernie did not require that??level of care himself. Bernie devotedly and lovingly pushed her around in??her wheelchair, and daily brought her into the dining room for meals where??he physically fed her until he had a stroke in June 2019 (his second stroke),??from which he neer really rebounded. He became seriously ill with a raging??infection in August, and after a brief hospital stay, was returned home where??he died in his owneed.??He is survived by his wife of 69 years, Marion Dorita Greenberg Bender, as??well as his four children, Leslie Bender (Peter Sandwall, deceased) of??Syracuse NY, Cliff Bender (Alice Garcia Bender) of Fayetteville, NC, Steven??Bender (Jim Norlie, who died less than 2 months ago) of Monmouth OR and??Robert Bender (Lory Myerson) of NY, NY and Madison, CT. He has??grandchildren from coast to coast: Benjamin Saller (Jola Hyjek), Rachael??Saller Bender, Alida Misimi (Rebekah Williams Misimi), Nana Sang Bender,??Jonathan Farmer (Rasha Rahman), Melissa K. Bender, Michael Bender??(Shenandoah Hellman), Brianeender (Kelsey Jessup), Lily Bender, and Zach??Bender. He is also survived by nee great grandchildren: Adeline, Calvin,??Rain, Viva, Ziasia, Raphael, Fifi, Amani, and Amabella. Last, but not least,??he was Unee Bernie to his 9 nieces and nephews, their life partners,??children, and grandchildren. The family is still considering how best to celebrate Bernie???s life. You are??welcome to leave remembrances here.