Guests will be received at Riverview Towers, 52 Garetta Street, Squirrel Hill, at 11 AM on Tuesday, February 12, 2019. A Gathering of Joyful Remembrance will follow.
Martin Bernfeld passed away peacefully on Saturday, February 9, 2019. He is preceded in death by his daughter, Tovah Bernfeld. Martin is survived by his siblings, Lawrence and Bunny Bernfeld, and his children, Tamar and Jonathan Bernfeld. He has five grandchildren, Angela, Adam, Alexis, Amaya and Simone, who called him “Grandpa Eggy”. His youngest grandchildren will cherish the memories of pancake breakfasts with Grandpa Eggy at Eat n’ Park in Squirrel Hill, sugar rushes at Dunkin Donuts, and his spoiling them with presents from Kidz and Company. Martin was a lifelong Squirrel Hill resident, a fixture upstreet with his headphones and Giant Eagle bag, stopping for a lottery ticket at the newsstand and a coffee from Coffee Tree. In his earlier years he was well known in town as Martin Solomon, the R&B singer whose voice could lift you from your seat and transcend your spirit. He was a member of numerous bands over the years including Gypsy, King Solomon, and Martin Solomon and the Hurricanes. The word “fan” does not capture Martin’s love and obsession with the Pittsburgh Steelers; he was a walking encyclopedia of Steelers’ facts and stats. Martin will be remembered for an incredible sense of humor. He lived for the perfectly timed and delivered punch line. Soul music, Steelers’ football, good jokes and most of all updates about his grandchildren brought Martin true joy. A few years back, attending a Maceo Parker concert with his eldest daughter, he commented that when he passed he wanted Parker’s famous line on his gravestone. So here is to Martin: “2% Jazz, 98% funky stuff.” Guests will be received at Riverview Towers 52 Garetta St. at 11:00 AM on Tuesday, February 12, 2019. A Gathering of Joyful Remembrance will follow. Arrangements entrusted to the Ralph Schugar Chapel, Inc., 412-621-8282. www.schugar.com
To Marty's family, my deepest condolences. I went to Hebrew and Sunday school with him. We played ball on Raleigh Street and at Davis Field. One of my regrets was losing contact with him.
RIP Marty
