Valerie Bagley Harrison

Valerie Bagley Harrison, the daughter of Vincent and Loretta (Johnson) Bagley, was born on September 24, 1938, in Brooklyn, New York. Her love for Brooklyn never waned. She often reminisced about learning to swim at the Steeplechase Park Swimming Pool in Coney Island and eating Nathan’s hot dogs on Surf and Stillwell Avenues near the beach. And she recalled memories of outings in Bliss Park, trips to the bakery, and walks across the Brooklyn Bridge. She marveled at her grandfather, a dock builder, who knit hats for neighborhood kids, grew flowers behind their brownstone, and played chess in Sunset Park.

Her childhood was rich in love, music, laughter, and family time. Her mother’s Scandinavian relatives infused holidays with piano, ukulele, singing, and tap dancing. At home, while doing dishes after meals, it was not uncommon for everyone to sing and dance. Whenever anyone was upset in the household, her Irish father would spout his favorite saying, “Pull yourself up by your bootstraps,” a line she adopted and often used.

As a girl, Valerie would sometimes accompany her dad to work on Saturday mornings at Lehman Brothers at 1 William Street in Lower Manhattan. It was a joy for her. In the afternoon, they would go to confession, and then, without fail, she, her brother Chip, and her parents would go to her grandmother’s home on 61st Street for family meals, including her favorite, Irish soda bread. At the table, she would sit next to her cousin Joy, nine years younger, whom Valerie embraced from the moment she was born. Throughout her life, our mother recounted stories about the Irish sisters and cousins sitting on her grandmother’s front stoop, telling stories and keeping her in stitches with laughter.

Every Sunday, there was Mass at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, now a Minor Basilica, in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, followed by Sunday school. Afterward, her family of four would often go on family excursions, like a ferryboat ride to Staten Island and then a walk around downtown Manhattan. In the city, they would often stop at Planters Peanut on Broadway and eat peanuts on the subway while heading home. Other trips could be to museums, the zoo, Coney Island, or walks along The Narrows, where they’d watch boats and ships enter New York Harbor, traveling from the Atlantic Ocean toward the Port of New York. In the wintertime, sleigh riding in the park was not uncommon.

From ages 13 to 17, Valerie spent her summers at her grandmother’s cottage on Chapman Lake in Pennsylvania, where her adoration for her grandmother, Winifred, continued to grow. At first, her Irish relatives from Scranton called her a city girl, but after she got used to the bees patrolling the outhouse and survived a bull chasing her up a tree, she took to country life and cherished summers on the lake with aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends. It was here that she learned to polka, and she twirled night after night at a nearby dance hall.

At 16, she was hired to work at Cushman Bakery in Brooklyn, and when her family moved to Cedar Grove, New Jersey, she went to work at their Newark store. After graduating from high school, Eastern Airlines, at 10 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City, hired her to work as a travel agent, a position she loved. Also during that time, at 19 years old, fate intervened.

On December 22, 1957, Valerie went to a ballroom in Garfield, New Jersey, for an evening of polka and dancing. Our father, Frank, spotted her, said she was the prettiest girl in the room, and later noted that “the beautiful blonde was whirling like a dervish.” After introductions, he asked her who her favorite singer was, and she said, “Sinatra.” He already loved the crooner, and upon hearing her answer, he said he was “beginning to love this girl.” Soon after, he took her to see Sinatra at Skinny D’Amato’s 500 Club in Atlantic City, one of many nights together with Ole Blue Eyes.

Frank and Valerie were married on May 7, 1960, in Cedar Grove, New Jersey. Three children, Frank III, Hallie, and Courtney, followed. In 1965, the growing family moved from Paterson to Pines Lake in Wayne. Life in the lake community meant long summer days at West Beach, playing in the sand and swimming for hours, and watching boats sail on the water. Weekends brought trips to historical sites, sporting events, and visits with extended family. Sundays always included church at St. Mary’s, followed by a stop at the bakery in Pompton Lakes to pick up a box of assorted cookies to bring home.

By the summer of 1976, the family moved to Sarasota, Florida, and Valerie began a new chapter in her life. She pursued a college degree in teaching and later earned her master’s degree in education, turning her love of children and learning into her career. In the late 1970s, she began teaching at Moody Elementary School in Manatee County and later taught at Braden River and Tara Elementary Schools. She was that teacher, the one with blinking outfits, flashing earrings, and a hat for every occasion. Her classroom was alive with glittering projects, mobiles, and colorful bulletin boards, and she brought the same enthusiasm to her students that she brought to everything she held dear. She loved her students, and they loved her right back. For many years she taught faith formation at St. Thomas More Church, and she sewed First Holy Communion dresses to bring to children in Arcadia.

Valerie’s first grandchild, Adam, was born in 1997, followed by Paige in 1999 and Payton in 2003. Together with Frank, she injected laughter and fun into their days. Nannie planned nonstop adventures: season tickets to Busch Gardens, games at Ed Smith Stadium, shark-tooth hunts on Casey Key, and summer fun runs at Siesta Beach. There were popcorn movie nights, art projects, morning pancakes, evening pizzas, and carrots for Thumper, who hopped around her garden each day.

But her favorite story dates back to 2001 when she and Frank flew from Florida to Denver to visit their grandson, Adam, who was almost four. They planned to rent a car and drive to Aspen for a week of mountain fun. Their flight was delayed, though, so they only made it as far as Breckenridge, where the nights can be surprisingly cold even in the summer. They were having trouble finding their lodging and pulled off the road to regroup when a bear lumbered in front of the car, stood up on its hind legs, and peered into the car at them.

Our father’s reaction was visceral, one of intense verbal panic. But our mother, a lifelong collector of stuffed bears and not one to pass up on an adventure, was delighted. To her, the bear was there to welcome them to the Rockies while our father was screaming at her to put the car in reverse and back up, claiming the bear might start shaking the car. She was paralyzed with laughter. Eventually, the bear satisfied its curiosity and went on its merry way. Later, our father told us that Valerie laughed about it all night long.

That is just one of the many stories that captured Valerie’s sense of humor, vibrant spirit, and ability to find wonder in the most unexpected places.

Valerie was preceded in death by her husband, Frank X. Harrison; her parents, Vincent and Loretta Bagley; and her brother, Ronald Bagley. She is survived by her adult children, Frank Harrison (Gabby), Hallie Harrison, and Courtney Lewandrowski (Greg); her grandchildren, Adam Harrison (Lizz Pankova), Paige Lewandrowski, and Payton Lewandrowski; and her cousin, Joy Spellman.

A funeral Mass will be held on Friday, October 16th, at St. Thomas More Catholic Church. Visitation will begin at 9:00 a.m., with the Mass at 10:00 a.m. Family and friends are invited to gather for a reception with refreshments from 11:00 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. Interment will follow at Sarasota National Cemetery.