Queensbury – Bernie Gordon ,78, of Queensbury passed away Tuesday, May 6 at home after a very long and courageous battle with COPD. He was born March 9 ^th, 1942 in Hudson Falls, the son of the late Francis & Ella Gordon.

At an early age Bernie was an avid musician and found the drums to be his future in the music business. As a teenager he was a member of the Crusaders Drum and Bugle Corp drum line, performing throughout the northeast. His professional music career started in the early 60's with the formation of the Bernardo Four rock & roll band which performed many of the 50's and 60's hits popular at that time of music history. The group traveled extensively throughout the northeast and played many venues in NY and New England, a great time was had by all.

In April of 1965 he married the love of his life, Leila Goodwin. They have been together for the past 56 years residing in the Glens Falls area. In February of 1966 Bernie joined the Glens Falls Fire Department, spending the next 27 years as a firefighter for the city. As Bernie stated "I loved being a fire fighter for the city and looked forward to going to work every day, not many people can say that about their jobs." A long time crew member described Bernie as a very good firefighter who took his job very seriously and was extremely supportive of the new members who joined the department. He went on to say that after Bernie's retirement the house became a lot "quieter" and it took a little time to fill the void.  Bernie retired in June 1993 and earned several commendations during his years of service to the department. On November 11 ^th , 1967 Bernie was cited along with Chief LeRoy Akins for personal meritorious service in a fire rescue on Ackley Street in Glens Falls.  He was also a member of the BPOE Glens Falls Lodge 81 and was a fan of NASCAR. While living on Hilton Drive in South Glens Falls he thoroughly enjoyed landscaping his yard and growing many different varieties of vegetables in his back yard garden. A weed never existed on the property and neighbors constantly complemented him on his lawn and landscaping ability. His friend and neighbor, Sean Barlow was always available to assist him on any project that was too difficult in his later years.

Bernie made friends with everyone he met, at family gatherings he was always the center of entertainment and the jokes were continuous and the laughter was endless.   At the firehouse, the crew would work a 24 hour shift and as Chief Ron Cote said at Bernie's retirement "it can sometimes be difficult to pull a 24 with the same group of guys but all you need was to have Bernie Gordon on your crew and the time flew by". Spaghetti, meatballs and sweet sausage was his specialty and his firehouse crew occasionally ate well during their shift. Many of the family gatherings were often centered around Bernie's spaghetti dinners with enough food to feed most of the neighborhood. His stories were endless and always entertaining and usually hysterical, the family felt he missed his calling as a stand-up comedian.

In retirement Bernie ran a successful painting business and over the years built up a long list of satisfied customers both residential and commercial. Each spring he was usually booked for weeks in advance as former customers would wait for an opening in his schedule to return.

In addition to his parents, he is predeceased by his sister Fran (Pokey) Duell. Survivors, along with his wife Lee, a daughter, Aprile (Don) Carlino of Kingsbury, Lisa (Scott) Leonard and a son Michael and his wife Nicole all of Queensbury. Following his father's footsteps in fire service, Michael has served as Chief and Assistant Chief of the West Glens Falls Volunteer FD for the last 25 years. Survivors also include his grandchildren, Daniel Saleem, Lauren Saleem, Sarah Leonard, Lexie Gordon, and Nicolas Carlino all of Queensbury, a grandson, Adam Gordon is currently serving his 10th year with the US Navy stationed in RI. He is also survived by his sister Lettie (Roger) Saheim of Schagiticoke and his brother Terry (Patricia) Gordon of Queensbury. His many nieces and nephews will really miss "Uncle Bernie", he never forgot a birthday or graduation.

In his memory, the family has asked that memorial donations be made in his name to High Peaks Hospice of Warren County, 454 Glen Street, Glens Falls, NY 12801. The family would also like to extend their sincere gratitude to Ginger Heidorf and Vicki Goodspeed of High Peaks Hospice for the care and compassion they extended during this difficult time.

A private family service will be conducted at a later date.

Condolences may be sent directly to Baker Funeral home, 11 Lafayette St., Queensbury, NY 12804 or through www.bakerfuneralhome.com