Ernest W Cohen

Ernie is survived by his wife, Joann; two daughters and sons-in-law, Sharon and Bradley Herbst of Jacksonville; and Jackie and Brian Bukstein of Chicago ; a sister and brother-in-law, Shelley and Mark Schulman of Cleveland; four grandchildren, Sydney and Andrew Herbst and Joshua and Zachary Bukstein; three sisters-in-law and brothers-in-law, Debbie and Lou Bauer of Jacksonville; Lisa and Tobin Shepardson of Northeast, Pa.; and Jim and Denise Murphy of North Lawrence, N.Y.; four nephews, Howie (Lindsay), Kenny (Brittany) and Jeffrey (Alison) Schulman and Brett Bauer; a niece, Becca Shepardson; two great-nieces and one great-nephew; and his step-mother-in-law, Marcia Murphy of Cassadaga, N.Y. He was predeceased by a sister, Hallie Cohen, in 2009.

Ernie was born February 25, 1950, in South Euclid, Ohio, the son of Elaine and Manuel “Mannie” Cohen. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history from The Ohio State University in 1972 and served as secretary and president of Zeta Beta Tau fraternity. Upon graduation, Ernie joined the family business - American Steel Drum Co. - and became vice president.

After the company closed, he began a highly successful career in sales management in various industries in the Cleveland area such as Kinzua Environmental and Wirtshafters Inc. He married Joann Murphy on Oct. 7, 1994, in Painesville, Ohio.

In 1996, Ernie opened his own firm - At Your Service - a multi-faceted personal-service business which operated successfully for several years before the Cohens decided to leave Ohio for Orange Park in February 2003. Once settled, he started another business, Software Unlimited, and eventually transitioned into a position as a regional sales representative in the credit-card-processing field where he was recognized as a top producer and deal closer. He then joined Haven Hospice as the Clay County professional liaison in January 2012 and immersed himself in the meetings, activities and events of Clay County to promote Haven Hospice and its mission which dramatically increased the agency’s profile in the community.

After two years, he accepted a similar position at Oak View Rehabilitation Center where he also became a member of the Board of Directors with Kids First of Florida - a non-profit dedicated to providing adoption and foster-care services to children emerging from abusive situations.

By August 2015, as the board explored a new marketing approach to increase awareness and support for the Kids First program, Ernie stepped into a newly created role as not only as the community liaison for Kids First, but also the liaison for its sister non-profit agency - Clay Behavioral Health Center.

Ernie became a very active member and eventually vice president of the Clay County Senior Adult Advocacy Council where guests at the annual fundraising barbecue could anticipate seeing Ernie wearing a pig or turkey costume in summer or an elf or gingerbread boy outfit at Christmastime, and he was also known to turn up dressed as a jockey, ballerina or whatever outfit the occasion demanded. At the same time, Ernie was an extremely popular and in-demand master of ceremonies. His outrageous sense of humor, infectious enthusiasm and gift for provoking people with just the right balance of mischief and humor made him a natural to host community-networking groups and signature Clay County events.

He was an avid Cleveland Browns fan who held season tickets for more than 20 years until the team “ripped his heart out” by moving to Baltimore. Some of his greatest joy came from watching his grandchildren participate in artistic performances and sports and from being part of a cause or team that helped and supported children.

A celebration of life will be held at a later date in Orange Park, Florida.

Services were held Friday, July 16 at the Berkowitz-Kumin-Bookatz Memorial Chapel, 1985 S. Taylor Rd., Cleveland Hts.

Interment Mt. Olive Cemetery.

To view this service please navigate to https://youtu.be/8s9r0gS-bLE.

FAMILY WILL RECEIVE FRIENDS AT THE RESIDENCE OF LINDSAY AND HOWIE SCHULMAN, 29060 NAYLOR RD. SOLON,OH FRIDAY FOLLOWING SERVICES AND INTERMENT UNTIL 8 PM.

Memorial contributions may be made in Ernie’s name to Kids First of Florida/Clay Behavioral Health Center, 1726 Kingsley Ave., Orange Park, Fla., 32073 or by following this link.