Bernard Randolph Freeland

Bernard Randolph Freeland of Austin, Texas and formerly from Bellaire, Texas passed away peacefully Sunday November 19, 2017 at the age of 100. He was born in Monumental, West Virginia the youngest of four children to Enoch Randolph and Alice Freeland.

He enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1941 where he eventually became a navigator of a B-24. Bernie flew in 13 missions over Italy. After the war in Europe ended he flew several mercy missions before being transferred back to the states in 1945, where he ended his active duty and enlisted with the Air Force Reserves which he served for 36 years retiring as a Major.

Bernie graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 1948 and began a career as a business analyst for Stanolind Oil and Gas which eventually became Amoco Oil then BP Oil Corporation.

As a life member of the Men’s Garden Club, Bernie showcased his gardening talents not only at his home, but by volunteering at Bellaire’s Pittman Park and Nature Center, and as a long time participant of the landscaping committee at Bellaire Methodist Church where he was a member until he moved to Austin in 2009. Bernie was a loyal Scout leader, taking the scouts on exciting adventures throughout the United States. He was an avid beekeeper and kept the neighborhood well stocked with honey.

Traveling was a one of Bernie’s passions. His adventures carried him from canoeing the Amazon River in Brazil, hiking the Great Wall of China, camping in Siberia to see the Whooping Cranes, witnessing the winter migration of Monarch Butterflies in Mexico, climbing the Inca ruins in Peru, to helping in Romanian orphanages. He was always an environmentalist and was a life member of the Audubon Society and the Sierra Club. He was proud knowing that he had stepped on every continent and dipped his toe in every ocean.

On June 28, 1946, Bernie married May Elizabeth Blackhurst of Cass, WV. They spent 63 wonderful years together before her death in 2009. Bernie is also preceded in death by one daughter Alicia Linda Freeland. He is survived by two daughters, Jean Shoup (Mike) of Brenham, Texas, and Bernadine Bering (Conrad) of Austin; one son Thad Freeland (Monica) of Mulberry, Arkansas; three grandsons, Randy Shoup (Hana), Nick Shoup, Allen Freeland; four granddaughters, Kelly Shoup Anderson (Jared), Hannah Bering, Moira Bering, and Kelsey Freeland; one great grandson, Jared Anderson.

A celebration of life will be held January 27, 2018 in Brenham, Texas. Burial will be at Arborvale Cemetery in Greenbank, WV. In lieu of flowers memorials may be given to Bellaire United Methodist church, Westlake Methodist Church, Men’s Garden Club of Houston, Tx, Pittman Park, or the Bellaire Methodist Boy Scouts of America.