Douglas A. Bernard

In June 2021, Doug entered his fourth year of Home Hospice Care. While he was too frail for a lung biopsy, his provisional diagnosis was mesothelioma. As a young engineer, he was often stationed at construction sites at a time when there were few safety regulations. I suspect many of these sites might have been former trash dumps with exposed asbestos, which is the leading cause of mesothelioma. Throughout his hospice care, Doug required oxygen therapy and long-acting morphine 24/7. Overall, he had a decent quality of life, partly because he was in his home environment and pain was well managed.

Most patients in hospice have a poor prognosis and usually pass within six months. To state that Doug exceeded expectations is an understatement. On three occasions, his Hospice doctor stated emphatically that he was in the dying phase, and on each of these occasions, staff were in disbelief at his recovery. I can’t say I was overly surprised. In many ways, “Exceed Expectations” was his mantra. And he truly exceeded many expectations in his lifetime.

Doug’s desire was to be cremated coupled with a traditional Catholic service. His wooden urn was handcrafted and blessed by Trappist Monks. I selected cherry wood because it’s symbolic of renewal, awakening, and rebirth. The gold ball that was the base for his artificial eye will be retrieved in the cremation process and will be re-casted as a Christian cross that will be attached to his urn.

In closing, I want to emphasize that Doug truly loved his family and Cajun roots. His bedroom was filed with family photos, and I was privileged to learn the stories behind each photo. I included many of these photos on this web site. The posted photos include one of my recent paintings that Doug admired. It will be incorporated into a living memorial that will be named in honor of Doug.

Below is a brief biography that summarizes Doug’s career along with some personal references. It was originally printed in our condominium newsletter, The Times of Montebello, in 2017.

Guido R. Zanni

Douglas A. Bernard: Highway Technology Trailblazer from Cajun Country*

From his sunny condo on the top floor of Montebello’s Building 4, Doug Bernard can survey the sprawling network of roads and bridges he helped bring to fruition when he was the Federal engineering supervisor. A retired civil engineer, Doug spent 32 years in the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), where he served as Director of Office of Technology Applications, introducing new technology as demonstration projects to state departments of transportation.

He led a variety of research products and was a trailblazer in promoting asphalt pavement recycling. The idea of recycling asphalt pavement started in Europe in the late 1960’s, Doug said, but hadn’t gained any traction in the US. “When I presented the idea to a group of state engineers they said, ‘Recycled asphalt? Are you crazy?’” But Doug led the charge with demonstration projects in several states, and what seemed dubious at the time became a common cost-effective practice by the 80’s. Today, it is the industry standard.

Doug also was a key player in the development of adding shredded scrap tires to asphalt, thus improving the quality of asphalt as well as helping the environment by finding a use for old tires throughout the country. The practice is now acceptable for paving projects in the U.S.

He received numerous awards for his pioneering efforts, including the FHWA’s Unusually Outstanding Performance Award, the Dwight David Eisenhower Centennial Coin Award for Innovation, and a Distinguished Career Service Award. Local projects in the DC metro area with which Doug was involved in the design included the 3rd Street tunnel to the Capitol, replacement of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge—which he saw clearly from his condo — and expansion of the 14th Street Bridge. He also was involved with its repair after a commercial jet struck the bridge in 1982.

When Doug left the FHWA in 1994 he joined the private sector as head of government relations for Quixote Transportation Safety, an international transportation corporation. The job sent him around the world on a variety of projects.

Born in the heart of Cajun country, St. Martinsville, Louisiana, to Cajun parents – “my mother’s last name was Bienvenu,” —Doug fished in the bayous, catching crawfish in home-made traps. He also enjoyed hunting and camping. Like most young boys, he also played baseball. When he was 10 years old, Doug poked himself in the eye with an icepick as he was lacing a baseball glove. The accident destroyed his right eye, but he only lost about 30 percent of his vision. He went on to graduate in 1959 with a degree in civil engineering from the University of Southwest Louisiana.

He met his partner Guido R. Zanni in 1979, and prior to his death, celebrated their 42-year relationship. They moved into an H unit in 2001, downsizing from a four-story Victorian home on Capitol Hill. Both Doug and Guido said Montebello was love at first sight. After looking at about 30 condos in the Metro area, they saw their unit, bought it the next day, and went to settlement two weeks later. It was the amenities that really sold them— “especially the cafe,” said Doug. They felt they needed more space so in 2010 they bought the unit next door. “We upsized,” noted Doug. Their spacious condo has 17 rooms.

As a resident engineer for Montebello, Doug participated in the review of specs for the elevators, new roofs, and new HVAC and other projects, and donated his time and expertise on many projects.

Doug fully retired in 2010 and especially enjoyed having the time to read and follow the financial markets, but he would tell people he had to give up one of his favorite sports—waterskiing. He even made a pair of water skis while in high school. “They’re gathering dust down in our storage unit,” he said.

Although he lived in the Washington area most of his adult life, Doug never forgot his Cajun roots. He continued to subscribe to his small hometown newspaper, and Guido learned to cook a mean gumbo. One of the last public events he attended was a Montebello Mardi Gras Party, and while his knees prevented him from dancing, Doug could still sing some Zydeco tunes—the kind that get your toes a tapping’.

Doug, Laissez les bons temps rouler!

* Original article by Sue Allen and printed in the Times of Montebello, 2017. Updated and revised by Guido R. Zanni, July 2021.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in Douglas' memory may be made to St. Jude Shrine, 512 West Saratoga St, Baltimore, Maryland 21201 US, www.stjudeshrine.org.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.DemaineFuneralHomes.com for the Bernard family.