Bernard E. McCue

Bernard is predeceased by his wife Barbara, and brother Lawrence. He is survived by his daughters Pamela (John) Barry, Sharon (Tom) DiTucci, Kathleen (Mark) O’Leary, Diana Beckman, and his brother Joseph (Pam). He is also survived by his grandchildren John David (Kristen) Barry, Shannon (Ron) Kropis, Christopher (Robyn) Barry, Kara (Jason) Juszczak, Kristin (Candi) Santos, Thomas John (Katrina) Beckman, Kristi (Bill) Kane, Justin (Rachel) Beckman, Brendan O’Leary, and several great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews.

Bernard’s visitation will be held on Thursday, February 27, from 10-11 am, at the funeral home, 1411 Vintage Lane. His funeral service will follow at 11 am at the funeral home. Private interment Holy Sepulchre Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the National Kidney Foundation via online at www.kidney.org or by mail to local office at 1344 University Avenue, Suite 270, Rochester NY 14607.

Bernard E. McCue Story:

Born in Rochester on October 29, 1934, to Frances Shireman and Francis McCue, along with two younger brothers Lawrence and Joseph.

Bernie attended Holy Family School as a child, and then Edison Tech where he played football and took a liking to carpentry, thinking he might go into that trade.

Then he met Barbara Bailey and everything changed!  They went on a first date through mutual friends and even though he was only 16 but told her he was older, she fell for him right away.  They were married in 1954 when he was just 19, and by then he had secured a position at Kodak in Paper Sensitizing where he spent his entire career and did very well.

Bernie and Barbara started their family quickly and after four girls, decided they were perfectly happy with the family they had created.  He used to say “How lucky can one guy be” having all daughters and 5 females in the house!   He also made it known from very early on that there were three women that were instrumental in his life growing up…his Mom, his Grandma Rosie and his Aunt Marion.

Along the way, Bernie worked two jobs at many points to provide for his family, and they were able to build their new home in 1968 in Greece which was his pride and joy until the very end.

He was involved in his community, whether it was as a lector at church, or running for councilman for the town.  He was a strong democrat and worked in many ways to support that for years.  He was especially fond of JFK, and when JFK was in town one year, Bernie actually got to shake his hand!

He enjoyed all sports whether it was playing golf with his brother Larry, or watching the Yankees on TV.  He attended baseball games over the years in a few cities…he would travel with his sons-in-law or brothers-in-law to Pittsburg, Boston or Baltimore to catch a major league game.  He was also a big Buffalo Bills fan and had season tickets during the Jim Kelly years and always enjoyed going to games.

Traveling to Florida was a favorite trip the family took just about every other spring break for years.  Bernie would get the annual Kodak bonus and he would use it for many years to pack the family in the car and drive to Florida for a spring vacation to visit family there and enjoy the beach and sunshine.  The girls can remember all six of them packed tight in the car, riding for hours, and not sure how he and Barb put up with all of it each time!

After he retired early at 53 years old, he and Barb would frequently travel to Florida to visit family and hang out there during winter months.  They also did a cross country trip together which was a highlight for them.  Another frequent travel location was Massachusetts and the New England area.

Bernie was especially close to his brother Larry who lived nearby with his wife Roz, and the four of them would spend a lot of time together golfing, at a casino, going out to dinner or away for a weekend of fun.  In later years when he and Larry were both widowed, they stayed close and would go for weekly lunch or dinner at Giuseppes.  They both loved Italian food and were well known by the staff there.  He and Larry were always close and great support for each other through the tough times.

Bernie loved his cigars and his Jack Daniels…right everyone???  Cigar smoking was a favorite past time in his garage or on the back patio.  To this day the smell of a cigar to some family members is an instant reminder.  Jack Daniels with a splash of water was his drink of choice, and for as far back as anyone can recall, he enjoyed having an afternoon glass and called it his “pick-me-up”.  It was a favorite gift to receive when someone would bring him a bottle of Jack!

Bernie was a huge music lover, and clearly gravitated to jazz and the blues.  He had an extensive record collection, and always had a stereo system that he played every day.  He had speakers installed in almost every room of his house and no matter where he was, he could listen to his favorites which included Count Basie Orchestra, Louie Armstrong, Tony Bennett, Andy Williams, and Frank Sinatra just to name a few.  The girls can remember him singing to these songs (and he did have a nice voice) and sometimes either doing his trumpet/trombone sound, or dancing with their mom in the living room.  His love for music has definitely carried on through the family.

Bernie’s girls and Barbara always made sure there were family functions happening to gather everyone together and celebrate holidays, birthdays and anniversaries.  He loved when they were all together and enjoyed watching everyone have a good time.  He was so proud of his grandchildren and their accomplishments, right to the very end.  He always shared with anyone that he conversed with how lucky he was to have nine grandchildren, and able to still be here to see all the great-grandchildren born.

He was a proud man who loved his family, and will be missed by all of them!