He was born on the 20th of June 1926, in Violet, Texas, where he attended grade school at the Old Violet three room schoolhouse. He graduated from Robstown HS in 1944. During his youth he helped out on the family farm, gaining farming experience. His first “paying” job was hauling cotton bales from the Violet Gin Company to the Corpus Christi Compress when he was 16 years old.
Leon won a 4-H scholarship for his Rural Electrification Project, bringing electricity to the Bernsen home farm. This included a train trip to Chicago to attend the National 4-H Convention.
Upon graduation from High School, he enlisted “for the duration” in the United States Navy to support the war effort. He was stationed at Camp Paul Jones near San Diego, CA where he trained as a gunner’s mate. When his tour ended July 1946, his rank was CM2—Petty Officer 2nd Class, and was awarded the American Campaign Medal and the WWII Victory Medal.
When his service ended he returned to Violet to resume civilian life on the family farm, while taking night classes in bookkeeping, ag economics, ag engineering and general crop production at Del Mar College. He once remarked that the year after he left the Navy was “the loneliest year of my life.”
Fortunately, in 1947 he met the love of his life at a CYO Dance. Leon R. Bernsen, Sr. and Anna Marie Moser married on the 28th of September 1947 in George West, TX and remained married for 57 years until her death in Sept. 2004. Together they began to build their lives as members of the community. They had two children—Leon, Jr. and Dianna; Anna Marie worked at home raising the children while also participating in Leon’s farming career. Leon had decided early on that he “didn’t want to work for anyone,” and began to build his own farming operation, first by leasing farm land, and eventually purchasing it. He spent long days in the fields, barely stopping to eat the lunches that Anna Marie, with kids in tow, prepared and brought to the fields.
Over the years Leon’s farming operating continued to expand as he purchased more farm land, operated a feeder cattle operation, built grain storage bins to avoid storage costs and dabbled in the oil field. Leon once said, “I love farming so much I would do it for nothing—and some years I have.” He caught a break in the late 50’s when an oil well was drilled on land he owned. It wasn’t a big well, but it was enough to give him a big boost.
In addition to running his farming operation, Leon became involved in many church, community and agriculture related groups. He was on the first board of directors responsible for constructing the Nueces County Show Barn, a Charter Member and organizer of the Clarkwood Lions Club (later the West Side Lions Club); a committeeman responsible for obtaining state financing for the Texas A&M Experiment Station at Clarkwood; he served as a member of environmental sub-committee of the council of governments to study the effects of the dredging of the Port of Corpus Christi; named Outstanding Young Farmer in 1957; and his most prized accomplishment was serving as a 4-H Club leader for 25 consecutive years.
Other organizations included Board Member and Past president of Nueces County Farm Bureau; Charter member of Coastal Bend Agri Business Council; Charter member and organizer of the South Texas Cotton and Grain Association; and a producer delegate to the National Cotton Council for a number of years.
Leon was a devout Catholic from an early age. For him, weekly mass was his first priority whether at home, traveling or in the hospital.
He was preceded in death by his wife, Anna Marie; his parents, William and Katherine Bernsen; a brother, Billy C. Bernsen; a sister, Betty Bernsen Schlottman; a brother, Maurice Bernsen; a brother, Tommy Bernsen; and a son, Leon Jr.
He is survived by his daughter, Dianna Bernsen (Stephen Livingston); a sister, Barbara Bernsen Greenwood; a sister, Virginia Meens; 3 grandchildren, 2 great grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, services will be private and attendance limited. A Memorial Service will be scheduled at a later date.
In lieu of customary remembrances, memorial contributions of your choosing may be directed toward St John Nepomucene Catholic Church, 603 N. 1st Street, Robstown, TX 78380.
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