Bertram is preceded in death by his wife, Rebeca Flores Blinn, and his Sister-of-the-heart, Maria Flores Galvan.
Bert and Becky were married 57 years. Together they had three children: Patricia, LisaJane and Bertram Jr.
He also had several children of the heart: His nephew, Raymond Bertram LaPointe, along with his nieces: Jeannette, Anna and GiGi Galvan and Pamela Townsend.
Bert had four Grandchildren: MichaelRay Pathmann, Michael Anthony Ferguson, Gabriel Bertram Blinn and Mia Valentina Blinn.
Bert had bonus Grandchildren: Matthew McKay, Christopher McKay, Sara Haughelstine and Courtney Hudson. Bert had two Great- grandchildren: Aubrey Rose Ferguson and Nathaniel Michael Pathmann. He treasured his children and embraced every moment with them.
At about the age of 4, Bertram and his parents left New England for the beautiful town of Barrio Logan. He remembers his friends telling him there were Indians in California. So, when Bert met his first friends and they had brown skin and, he of course, thought they were Indian. They were quick to invite him over to their home and the Diaz family gave him freshly made tortillas as a welcome gift. This was Bert’s introduction to the Mexican people’s and culture. In an era where minorities were being brought into White schools, Bert was in the Minority schools. He was quickly immersed in Mexican culture, but never learned Spanish.
After high school, Bert got a job at Ratners Clothing Factory and that is where he met his wife, Rebeca Flores.
Bert asked his future mother-in-law for Becky’s hand in marriage. When she inquired about the wedding date, Bert said he wanted to be married by the end of the month! Francisca Flores stated that the wedding could no sooner than three months. We didn’t want the Church to think it was a shotgun wedding!
Several historical events were happening in 1963, John F Kennedy was President; Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King began the first non-violent campaign for Civil Rights in Birmingham, Alabama; the Rolling Stones made their 1st television appearance; the Beatles made their 1st US TV appearance on ABC’s Big Night Out.
But all these events could not top the wedding of Bert and Becky. They were married on May 11, 1963, at Otay Apostolic Church in Chula Vista, California by Pastor Pedro Hermosillo. The bridesmaids were: Betty Silva, Becky Sandez, Phoebe Fuentes, Vicky Cary. The groomsmen were: Rex Davis, Misael Zaragoza, Roberto Moreno and Benjamin Flores. Armandito Tamayo and Diane Dominguez served as the Pages while Aida Flores was the flower girl. The wedding ceremony and reception was all conducted in Spanish and the Gringo groom had to be nudged by the bride throughout the day and she served as his personal translator.
Together they purchased their first and only home in Otay Mesa in 1968 while Becky was pregnant with their second child.
Bert never had siblings of his own or even had known of his grandparents, uncles, aunts or cousins. After marriage he instantly had 8 Flores siblings, and an innumerable Flores extended family.
Bert seemed to always work three jobs to ensure Rebeca could stay him with the children. He was able to retire from the Naval Air Reserves and as a Civil Servant for the Naval Air Station, North Island. While his children were in school, he coached or managed soccer and softball teams.
Bert had become everyone’s Tio, father image, life coach, mentor and example of how to be a Husband. Maybe that is the reason he had an abundance of hats.
We were proud to share our father with the many lives he touched. Dad made friends everywhere he went and loved to share his favorite restaurants. He gave us his unique “Blinn Humor” and he loved a good laugh. Daddy will definitely be missed. He loved to call us girls “Titi” and “Lili” ~ we are sure going to miss those nicknames.
A Memorial Service for Bertram will be held Friday, October 14, 2022 from 1:00 PM to 2:00 PM at The Chapel of Roses, 3838 Bonita Road, Bonita, CA 91902, followed by a Committal Service from 2:00 PM to 2:30 PM.
Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.glenabbeysandiego.net for the Blinn family.
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