John Michael Bernal

He was born John Michael "Mike“ Bernal on Sunday, August 26th, 1945 at the Naval Hospital in Norfolk, VA to parents Jerry and Mary Bernal A healthy 9 lbs. with a full head of hair. The young family stayed in Norfolk until Jerry was discharged from the Navy, relocating to El Paso, Texas. There he attended Crockett Elementary. The family enjoyed camping and spent a lot of time at the ball field where Jerry played semi-pro softball. It was only natural that Mike would fall in love with the sport, becoming a talented catcher. In 1956, the family relocated to So. California where opportunity had presented itself for his dad Jerry, and a baby sister was on the way. Initially in Fullerton where he attended Orangethorpe Elementary. There Mike would be one of the first teams to play Pop Warner Football in that area. His dad Jerry was instrumental in getting that program started.

When he was 11 they moved from Fullerton to Buena Park, where he played with the American League White Sox with a 7-2 record. At 13 and while attending Orangeview Jr. High he was part of the Buena Park Junior League All Star Team traveling to Japan and Korea for 21 days. While attending Western High School in Anaheim he continued to master his catching skills while being scouted by the Angels and the Dodgers. He was the catcher for soon to be pro pitcher Andy Messersmith. The two were quite a pair on the mound and at the plate. At 17, while playing an American Legion game in Garden Grove, CA, the runner struck Mike in the abdomen area during a play at home plate. Unaware of the severity of his injuries he went back in the game and finished it.

It wasn't until later that night that he realized he was hurt and went to the ER. His injuries were substantial and life threatening. He underwent emergency surgery was able to recover but was not able to ever play the sport he loved so dearly again. His friends and family rallied to his bedside while he was recovering and members of both the Dodgers and the Angels visited him. The Dodgers hosted a benefit game in his honor to help with medical bills. He graduated from Western High School in the spring of 1963 while recovering and getting his strength back, and attended Fullerton Jr College. In the next few years he traveled to and lived in New York City, pursuing his artistic dreams and talents.

After returning home one Christmas, he made a trip to Oregon to visit some high school friends and fell in love with it. Oregon offered wonderful fishing, beautiful scenery and a place where he could enjoy his love for music and expand his artistic skills. He opened a leather shop in Lincoln City where he made beautiful purses, belts and other items. He then moved to the Portland area where he would spend most of his adult life. He grew to be an avid fly fisherman frequenting his entire favorite fishing spots and had tackle and a reel in his vehicle at all times, just in case the possibility presented itself. Mike had a great sense of humor, a tender side, enjoyed music and loved everything about growing up "Americana" as he called it.

In 1980 (post-Mount Saint Helens eruption), Mike picked up odd jobs in the SE Portland area with one of them cleaning up ash in the parking lot for the company Unistrut. There he met a 23 year old, Eileen Cox, who worked for an electrical company across the street. They went on a double date with friends and continued to date for three years before making it official at the Albertina-Kerr Chapel in Portland. In August of 1983 they welcomed their daughter, Sarah. Mike continued to work for Unistrut who in turn would offer a full-time union carpenter job installing computer room flooring for major companies in the Portland Metro area such as Fugitsu, Intel and Hewlett Packard. There was a demand for jobs as a new era of technology boomed and Mike was one of the carpenter pioneers to lay ground (literally speaking). In 1986, they welcome their second daughter, Carrie. In 2003, Mike retired after 22+ years in the industry. That same year, Mike and Eileen parted ways and divorced in 2005.

Later, Mike would meet his second wife, Janet Murray. In 2008, they married in a simple backyard ceremony with family and friends present. Unexpectedly, Janet passed away from a blood clot in 2010. Mike continued to move forward in his life passing time with things he loved to do; drawing, fishing, camping, and keeping in touch with all of his old Unistrut pals. In 2018 Mike was hospitalized for liver and esophageal complications for a few days but resolved and discharged home. As the years went on, Mike’s health appeared to slowly depreciate. A liver checkup at the VA would reveal a mass on his lung from a CT scan in 2019. He was diagnosed with stage II small cell carcinoma lung cancer. Mike received 10 days of radiation with no intervention for chemotherapy. The outcome looked promising. After an annual fishing trip with his friends in June 2021, Mike returned home with immense pain in his low back and increased weakness. Mike was placed on hospice a few weeks later and passed away on July 11th, 2021 at Mount Hood Medical Center from liver failure with his daughter Sarah at his bedside.

Mike was a United States Air Force Veteran and wished to be cremated. He will be laid to rest at Willamette National Cemetery with honors on August 10th at 1030am.

His two daughters, Sarah Brown, Carrie Secanti; sister Libby Werle, as well as, extended family and friends survive him.