Bernard William Adamec "Bernie"

Bernard Adamec passed away on Saturday, August 26, 2023, at the age of 88. Bernie was born on November 2, 1934, being the youngest of thirteen children born to John and Anna Adamec who immigrated from Austro-Hungary (now Slovakia) in 1908. He grew up in the Slovak neighborhood of New York City’s east side (Yorkville). Bernie attended St. Anne’s Academy High School on a track & field scholarship. After graduating in 1952, he went to night school to study architectural drawing while working as a draftsman at Gibb & Hill, Inc. (an architectural/engineering firm) in New York.

In 1954, Bernie was drafted and inducted into the Army at Fort Dix, New Jersey. He was assigned to the 69th Infantry Division for basic training, after which he transferred to Camp Chafee, Arkansas, where he trained as a Forward Observer for the 105mm Howitzer Cannon Unit. In 1955, he was transferred to Ladd Air Force Base in Fairbanks, Alaska, where he was assigned as Forward Observer for the 4.2 Heavy Mortar Company of the 4th Infantry Regiment, 71st Division. His Mortar Company was part of the Ladd AFB defense perimeter for the Strategic Air Command’s “Distant Early Warning” (DEW) Line during the Cold War to provide warning of an incursion attempt across the Bering Straight by the Soviet Union. After an approximate two-year tour, Bernie returned to Fort Lewis, Washington, where he was released from active duty and assigned to the Army Reserve until his discharge in 1962. Bernie was awarded the National Defense Medal, Good Conduct Medal, and Expert Rifleman Badge.

After returning home, he attended the Catholic University of America in Washington D.C. from 1956 to 1961 under the Korea War GI Bill, where he earned a Batchelor of Architecture Degree, and where he met his wife-to-be, Mary Ellen DeVille. Upon graduation from Catholic University, Bernie began a 34 year career in architecture in private practice and the U.S. General Services Administration in Washington D.C. Among his many assignments and accomplishments were Design and Construction Coordinator for the Watergate Complex in Washington D.C. He became a Supervisory Architect for Public Building Services at GSA and the International Projects Director and Program Manager for design and construction of a $700mln program to build 25 vocational training facilities in eighteen sites throughout the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He was invited to by the government of Kuwait to study and recommend reforms to its policies of design and construction procurement. In addition to the time he spent in the Middle East, Bernie was the U.S. representative and Project Manager of a Design and Construction Technology Exchange with the Soviet Union for thirteen years until 1991.

Bernie spoke four languages and was a public speaker at professional forums and universities as well as a published author on Federal procedures to procure Federal civilian commissions. He was an Arbitration Judge on the Construction Industries Panel for the American Arbitration Association.

Bernie and Mary Ellen were married in 1962, and besides living in Washington D.C., they lived in Rockville, Olney, and Annapolis, Maryland. They enjoyed spending their winters in Longboat Key, Florida. Bernie loved spending time with his family, reading spy novels, and sketching pictures of his family and landscapes.

Bernie is survived by his wife of 61 years, Mary Ellen; son Dennis (Judith), daughter Kathleen Shaub (Richard), daughter Mary Chris Jammet (Bernard), and son Thomas (Diane); grandchildren Emily, Brendan, Katie, Kendall, Mia, Phoebe, Ricky, Isabella, Brody, Anna, George, Genevieve, and John Henry.

He is also survived by a brother, Stephen, of Tupelo, MS and two sisters, Agnes and Katherine, of Cutler Bay, FL. He is predeceased by his parents, John and Anna, brothers William, Joseph, Edward, John, and Frank; sisters Elsa, Anne, Francesca, and Helen.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Saturday, September 2, 2023 at 10:30 am in St. Mary’s Catholic Church 109 Duke of Gloucester Street Annapolis, MD 21401. Inurnment will follow in Saint Mary's Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

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