Bernie Loy Vandaveer, 84, of St. Louis, passed away peacefully on November 12th, with family holding his hand. He was a cherished father, grandfather, and friend to many, many, people in the St. Louis area and his presence will be deeply missed.
Born in Mt. Erie, IL on September 29th, 1941 to the late Clyde Vandaveer and Mamie Vandaveer (nee Chapman), Bernie dedicated his life to his family and he absolutely LOVED the vacuum cleaner business. He was the Watson Road Electrolux Branch Manager until its closing in the mid-2000s. He continued to sell and repair vacuums after the branch closed with a career spanning over 56 years! He would often smile and say, I just visit my friends and they write me checks. Of course, he was very dedicated to his customers and when they would call for service, he would say, “I never let any grass grow under them.” He had thousands of customers in the St. Louis area and won many sales awards throughout the decades.
After graduating from high school in small town Mt. Erie, he left the family farm and moved to the big city of St. Louis. His sister Ruth got him a job in the Glaser Drug Warehouse. He worked 9 years at Ludlow-Saylor Wire Company until finding his passion of selling vacuums for Electrolux in 1969. In 1966 he married the love of his life, the late Virginia N. Vandaveer, (nee Hoffman), and they shared nearly 40 years of marriage before her passing in 2006. Bernie and Ginny took numerous trips together all over the country. Some were sales trips but many were for pleasure like one of their favorites to Mackinac Island in Michigan. Together, they raised four children.
Bernie was known for his unique sayings and quick witted humor. He enjoyed riding motorcycles with friend Harold Fuqua and others.
Bernie was preceded in death by his beloved wife, “Ginny,” son Matthew Ryan Vandaveer, parents Clyde and Mamie Vandaveer, brothers Bob and Bennie Vandaveer, sisters Mary Lou Shaw (nee Vandaveer), Joyce Vandaveer and Ruth Wooldridge (nee Vandaveer).
He is survived by his loving children, Sandra (Ryan) Irwin (nee Vandaveer) of St. Louis, MO, Bernie (Misty) Vandaveer Jr, of New Albany, IN, and Vince (Lisa) Vandaveer of Springfield, MO; his 11 grandchildren, sister Shirley Caldwell (nee Vandaveer) (Granite City, IL) and brother Bill Vandaveer (Sebastian, FL), close friend Libby Rice and many nieces and nephews.
Services: Visitation will be held on Friday, November 21st from 4pm-8pm at Kutis South County. Funeral services will be held on Saturday, November 22nd at 10:00am at Kutis Funeral Home at 5255 Lemay Ferry Rd. St. Louis, MO 63129. The family invites all who knew him to attend and share their favorite memories. Interment Shepherd Hills Cemetery (Barnhart).