Bernadine Carney loved the Broncos, her 1957 Chevy and vodka straight up.
A ticket holder since the Broncos’ birth in 1960, Carney seemingly knew everything about the team, and the entire NFL, whether it was a 10-yard gain 20 years ago or the stats on a draft choice. She had ample recordings of games to watch off-season.
But the devotion didn’t stop her from exploding in profanity when the Broncos did something she considered stupid.
Carney “had an infectious laugh,” said her nephew Steve Gordon of Arvada, and she loved to hear good stories.
Life for Carney, who died of a ruptured aorta aneurysm July 25 at age 78, was sometimes brutal.
Her mother died when Carney was 4, and she and her three sisters were put in Queen of Heaven Orphanage, where they stayed for three years until their father remarried. Her brother, Frank, had been placed in a different orphanage.
In a 2000 Denver Post story about a reunion at the orphanage, Carney recalled the facility’s regimentation and strictness. She said she was taken care of but couldn’t remember ever getting a hug from a nun.
In her 20s, Carney had a baby, Denise Gammon, who was hydrocephalic. The child never grew out of her crib and never walked or talked.
Carney loved the child and was dedicated to her for the 11 years Denise lived, family members said.
Carney spent most of her working career in offices of construction unions. Her sister Rosemary Calomino cared for the child during the day for 18 months, after which Carney used a sitter.
Generous with family and friends, Carney refused help in caring for the girl, said Calomino, of Wheat Ridge.
Though having only a high school education, Carney read constantly. “She was our Wikipedia before the Web,” said nephew Anthony Calomino in the eulogy written by her nieces and nephews.
Carney wasn’t shy about correcting people on anything: grammar, political views (she was a Democrat) or the importance of unions.
“She could be very blunt and forthright,” said niece Barb Hahn of Denver.
“She was always glad to tell you what to do,” said Gordon.
“We loved and feared her,” said Calomino.
“She was an entity to be reckoned with,” said niece Carla Tanda of Lakewood, recalling the time Carney got angry during a card game, threw the cards into the air and marched off.
Carney loved Broncos games and “really got uptight about them,” said a longtime friend, Jerry Bryant. For example, when she was watching at home and the team muffed something, she took a pair of scissors and, without a mirror, trimmed her hair “because they make me so nervous,” she’d say.
When games were going well, she was calm enough to crochet afghans for friends and family.
Bernadine Mary Carney was born in Denver on Jan. 9, 1932. In addition to her sister and brother, she is survived by another sister, Dolores Cashman of Littleton; a half brother, Philip Carney of Northglenn; and 10 nieces and nephews. Her sister Betty Ann Gordon preceded her in death.
Virginia Culver: 303-954-1223 or vculver@denverpost.com
Other Deaths
Edmund Shea Jr., 80, a venture capitalist who co-founded Shea Homes, one of the nation’s largest for-profit homebuilders, died Aug. 13 at his home in San Marino, Calif., a spokesman said.
As a venture capitalist, Shea invested in startups, including Adobe, Compaq computers and Peet’s Coffee & Tea.
Shea also was a key part of a family plumbing business that was involved in landmark construction projects such as the Hoover Dam and the Golden Gate and San Francisco Bay bridges. Los Angeles Times
