Ralph Thomas Bernard lived a beautiful life. Ralph was born September 25, 1940 in Camden, NJ to loving parents, Ralph and Antonia Bernardo.

He was a hard working man, dedicated to his family. He was a Navy Veteran. He met the love of his life, Jo-Ann Vasta in 1962, married in 1964 and they were together every day for the next 61 years. He put himself through college at Rutgers University while raising his 2 sons Ralph and Gary in Roselle Park. A few years after his daughter Kathy-Lynn was born, the family moved to Cranford where they remained for 22 years to raise their family. He worked at BASF in Parsippany as a purchasing manager for many years. In Cranford, he was a boy scout leader, a Little League coach, an Indian Princess Dad and marched in many Memorial Day parades with either group. Ralph's work ethic was unmatched and modeled/admired by his entire family. His meticulous care of his Corvair collection and financial planning mirrored the acute attention he paid to his family to make sure they felt loved, safe and supported with all their endeavors.

He was compassionate, loving, caring, attentive, and determined. His love for reading, dogs, music, tennis, golf, cars and biking was shared and passed on to all three of his children. If you were around Ralph, you were guaranteed to feel at ease and enjoy some intelligent conversation. He was also a master of trivia!

After raising his family and sending all three of his children to college, Ralph and Jo-Ann moved to Neenah,Wisconsin to work as a purchasing manager at Kimberly-Clark. After 9 years there, he retired and they split their time between Rehoboth Beach, DE and Del Ray Beach, Fl. He loved driving his convertible Corvette around Florida. He loved classic cars and classic rock & roll. He had an eclectic taste in music and loved everything from The Beach Boys to Chuck Mangione, The Moody Blues to The Beatles. He also had a treasured collection of 45s of music from the 1950s.

Ralph is preceded in death by his loving parents Ralph & Antonia Bernardo & brothers Anthony and James. He is survived by his wife Jo-Ann, brother John DiBernardo and sister-in-law Barbara, sister-in-law, Heidi; his son: Ralph Bernard, daughter-in-law Michele: son Gary Bernard & daughter-in-law Sophie; daughter Kathy-Lynn Kelly & son-in-law Tim, his grandchildren: Cecilia, Goran, Christian, Mia and Nolwen. He is also survived by countless cousins, and all his loving nieces and nephews.

Dad, we will miss you, immensely. You were our "go-to" when life got rough, you were our sanity in this crazy world, and our comfort when we needed clarity. You were always someone we could count on, and although you were a straight shooter, you always got your point across without judgement, and always provided us sound advice. You always made sure we made our decisions after thinking things through. Because of you, we have the hearts of a lion, the love of our family, and an insane work ethic. We thank you dad for all the calls, wise words of advice, the love you gave us and the beautiful lives we've lived because of you, your hard work, and your boundless love for us. We are all better people Dad, because of you. We will forever keep you in our hearts.

A memorial service will be held for Ralph on Saturday, December 27, 2025 from 1-4pm at The Gran Centurions: 440 Madison Hill Rd. Clark, NJ 07066.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Ralph Bernard’s name to Tunnel to Towers at https://t2t.org

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