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David W. Bernard: A Gracious Winner

 

David W. Bernard loved his family and he loved golf, and he liked to combine his two passions. Every July, he played in a father-son tournament &emdash; twice in one day &emdash; so he could do 18 holes with each of his sons, Mark and David Jr. Before his daughter, Jill, was married last summer, he arranged a foursome with his two boys and his soon-to-be son-in- law. And he taught his wife of 33 years, Nancy, how to play.

"He was very patient with me," she said. "He wanted me to play golf so that when we traveled together we could do it together." (In return, he went shopping with her.) Despite his low golf handicap (just nine) and his fierce competitiveness, Mr. Bernard was a gracious winner, said Mrs. Bernard: "Nobody could ever be mad at him. He just had a very easy way about him."

Mr. Bernard, 57, was an industry specialist for the Internal Revenue Service and was based in Boston. On Sept. 11, he was on his way to a meeting at the I.R.S. offices at 7 World Trade Center when the first plane hit the towers. He was struck by falling debris and died of his injuries on Dec. 11.

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From "Profiles in Grief" of The New York Times