Jessica Bernotas, age 78, passed away peacefully February 19, 2022 after a long fight with leukemia. She was born June 10, 1943 in Clearwater PA to Jessica and James Marino. The family moved to Binghamton NY where Jessica (Jessie then) excelled in drama and cheerleading. She could equally belt out a show tune or the latest pop song, but music was always playing and being sung along to.

She raised three daughters Dana, Maria and Elizabeth with her first husband John Davidson who preceded her in death in 2020. She married the love of her life, Randolph Bernotas, in 1986 in the backyard of the home on Lake Beseck in Middlefield, Connecticut the couple shared since 1985.

Jessica loved to garden and cook from the garden. She loved the lake and the ocean. She also loved to hit the slots – and far more often came back with stories of grand jackpots.

Her career took her on a whirlwind tour of eccentric businesses from IBM to Mark Levinson Stereos to Yale Asian Studies to Womack Forklifts to Winchester Rifles to Kuzmak properties to Lane Construction, where she finally retired.

Jessica was a formidable opponent in all games from Scrabble to Trivial Pursuit to Pinochle and named her cats after her favorite games. Candy(land) is still going strong at 24 years young.

She loved the Cape – especially in the off seasons when she had Nauset beach to Randy and herself. She thought nothing of driving up just for a bowl of lobster bisque at the Brewster Fish House.

She toured the world visiting her youngest daughter in South Africa twice, England, Italy, Las Vegas, San Diego and so many other places. When she had a long layover in Tel Aviv she hired a guide and toured the city when most would have napped in the airport.

Standing just barely five feet tall she loved little things and called them "ronnies". She loved the baby ducks on the lake which she called corks because they bounced on the water; and she named every living thing – mallard ducks for example were called Thorndike and Millie although no one knows where she came up with those names.

Jessica is survived by her husband and best friend Randy Bernotas; her brother James Marino and sister Cecilia James, sister in law Pat DelBuono; Brother in laws 'the Jacks' – DelBuono and Troisi; her three daughters Dana McKeehan, Maria Davidson and Beth Davidson and Beth's husband Andy Wayne; her granddaughters Melanie, Leah and Erin McKeehan; her grandsons Bryan and Joshua Woolley and their children Alexia Woolley and Lilah Woolley; and many fantastic nieces and nephews and cousins too many to count!

In lieu of flowers please donate to the ASPCA at https://secure.aspca.org/donate/memorial

A celebration of her life is planned for her birthday in June with details to come.