It’s with a heavy heart that announcement is made of the passing of Bernard Marcel Grandjany, a member of NYCFire.net.
If you been around FDNY back in the 60’s you might remember a newsletter printed on white paper from the Third Alarm Association that was always found at the house watch desk. Bernie was the editor for years. Or could it have been possible that he was the person who handed you a hot cup of soup or coffee at three a.m. on an extremely cold windy day during a multiple alarm fire from the Red Cross canteen truck. Yet there is a lot about Bernie that too many of us never knew.
Bernard Marcel Grandjany, son of the esteemed French harpist Marcel Grandjany and his wife Georgette, was born on April 29, 1930, in Paris, France, and passed away peacefully in Queens, NY on February 24, 2024. His final act of kindness was to give the gift of life through organ and tissue donation, under the auspices of LiveOn NY.
Bernard’s family, living in Paris, became wary of the dangerous political climate in Europe and emigrated to the United States in 1936, residing in New York City. In 1937 at the age of seven years, Bernard began the study of the harp with his father. In his words, “it was not to be,” and his studies lasted only one month.
As a teenager, his interest peaked into the fire service and he hung around the original station of Engine 40/Ladder 35 at W. 62nd St., and 10th Ave. before the Lincoln Center was built.
He joined the auxiliary fire corps in the 1960’s and then joined the American Red Cross. He served as Assistant Director of Disaster Services for New York City for 25 years assisting people who had suffered from the fires. He also arranged compassionate leave for military service members with family emergencies.
Bernie has been a member of the Signal 6-6 Club, Association of Auxiliary Firemen of NYC, the Third Alarm Association and is presently a member of the Fire Bell Club besides NYCFire.net. He authored the Third Alarm Association newsletter, because he felt that the fire service needs a reporter and statistician. The Third Alarmer chronicled in detail the activities of the FDNY during the pivotal 1960s.
He was appointed Honorary Deputy Fire Chief with the Fire Department of New York in 1982 for services rendered to the City of New York by then Fire Commissioner Charles Hynes.
He first attended IFBA annual conventions in Baltimore, Chicago, Boston, and Milwaukee in the 60s. He admired and visited those clubs that operated canteens - in his words, the working clubs. He has written articles for Turn Out from those times.
Bernie’s most memorable events were responding with the Third Alarm/American Red Cross canteen to fires in Manhattan, particularly in the warehouse district area between 11th Ave., 12th Ave. and the 30s.
His most exciting moment was watching the Super Pumper system knock down building walls with its turret.
“Buffing taught me about the people in many organizations that are working to save lives and to prevent loss of life and property. Fire buffing taught me to understand the causes and effects of fire.”
“I learned how people suffer when families are burned out, and it inspired me to be among the people that help them. What buffing teaches is knowing the values of life and how quickly they can be lost.”
“For a young person it is an introduction to what life is all about and the many things that can happen.”
For many years Bernard escorted his mother and father on their annual summer trips driving throughout the United States, especially to see the natural beauty of the Western states. He developed a love of travel which continued in his retirement. He often took trips on ocean liners and trains across the United States and Canada to appreciate the natural beauty of both countries.
He was a member of The World Ship Society – Port of NY Branch, and The Steamship Historical Society of America.
Bernard lived in retirement in Rego Park, NY, and continued to attend harp-related events and concerts in the NYC area and to speak to American Harp Society (AHS) chapters about his father, Marcel Grandjany. Several short videos of Bernard reminiscing about his family are available in a playlist on the AHS YouTube channel.
Bernie was 93 years old and his age did not failed to stop him from traveling to Milwaukee this past summer as a delegate for NYCFire.net at the annual IFBA convention.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Thursday, February 29, 2024 at 10:30 am at Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Catholic Church, 62-81 60th Place, Ridgewood, New York 11385, with interment alongside his parents immediately following in the Gate of Heaven Cemetery, 10 West Stevens Avenue, Hawthorne, New York, 10532.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Bernard’s memory to The American Harp Society, which was founded by his father, at www.harpsociety.org or PO Box 260, Bellingham, MA 02019.
Arrangements are by Hess-Miller Funeral Home, 64-19 Metropolitan Ave, Middle Village, N.Y. 11379.
If you been around FDNY back in the 60’s you might remember a newsletter printed on white paper from the Third Alarm Association that was always found at the house watch desk. Bernie was the editor for years. Or could it have been possible that he was the person who handed you a hot cup of soup or coffee at three a.m. on an extremely cold windy day during a multiple alarm fire from the Red Cross canteen truck. Yet there is a lot about Bernie that too many of us never knew.
Bernard Marcel Grandjany, son of the esteemed French harpist Marcel Grandjany and his wife Georgette, was born on April 29, 1930, in Paris, France, and passed away peacefully in Queens, NY on February 24, 2024. His final act of kindness was to give the gift of life through organ and tissue donation, under the auspices of LiveOn NY.
Bernard’s family, living in Paris, became wary of the dangerous political climate in Europe and emigrated to the United States in 1936, residing in New York City. In 1937 at the age of seven years, Bernard began the study of the harp with his father. In his words, “it was not to be,” and his studies lasted only one month.
As a teenager, his interest peaked into the fire service and he hung around the original station of Engine 40/Ladder 35 at W. 62nd St., and 10th Ave. before the Lincoln Center was built.
He joined the auxiliary fire corps in the 1960’s and then joined the American Red Cross. He served as Assistant Director of Disaster Services for New York City for 25 years assisting people who had suffered from the fires. He also arranged compassionate leave for military service members with family emergencies.
Bernie has been a member of the Signal 6-6 Club, Association of Auxiliary Firemen of NYC, the Third Alarm Association and is presently a member of the Fire Bell Club besides NYCFire.net. He authored the Third Alarm Association newsletter, because he felt that the fire service needs a reporter and statistician. The Third Alarmer chronicled in detail the activities of the FDNY during the pivotal 1960s.
He was appointed Honorary Deputy Fire Chief with the Fire Department of New York in 1982 for services rendered to the City of New York by then Fire Commissioner Charles Hynes.
He first attended IFBA annual conventions in Baltimore, Chicago, Boston, and Milwaukee in the 60s. He admired and visited those clubs that operated canteens - in his words, the working clubs. He has written articles for Turn Out from those times.
Bernie’s most memorable events were responding with the Third Alarm/American Red Cross canteen to fires in Manhattan, particularly in the warehouse district area between 11th Ave., 12th Ave. and the 30s.
His most exciting moment was watching the Super Pumper system knock down building walls with its turret.
“Buffing taught me about the people in many organizations that are working to save lives and to prevent loss of life and property. Fire buffing taught me to understand the causes and effects of fire.”
“I learned how people suffer when families are burned out, and it inspired me to be among the people that help them. What buffing teaches is knowing the values of life and how quickly they can be lost.”
“For a young person it is an introduction to what life is all about and the many things that can happen.”
For many years Bernard escorted his mother and father on their annual summer trips driving throughout the United States, especially to see the natural beauty of the Western states. He developed a love of travel which continued in his retirement. He often took trips on ocean liners and trains across the United States and Canada to appreciate the natural beauty of both countries.
He was a member of The World Ship Society – Port of NY Branch, and The Steamship Historical Society of America.
Bernard lived in retirement in Rego Park, NY, and continued to attend harp-related events and concerts in the NYC area and to speak to American Harp Society (AHS) chapters about his father, Marcel Grandjany. Several short videos of Bernard reminiscing about his family are available in a playlist on the AHS YouTube channel.
Bernie was 93 years old and his age did not failed to stop him from traveling to Milwaukee this past summer as a delegate for NYCFire.net at the annual IFBA convention.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Thursday, February 29, 2024 at 10:30 am at Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Catholic Church, 62-81 60th Place, Ridgewood, New York 11385, with interment alongside his parents immediately following in the Gate of Heaven Cemetery, 10 West Stevens Avenue, Hawthorne, New York, 10532.
In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Bernard’s memory to The American Harp Society, which was founded by his father, at www.harpsociety.org or PO Box 260, Bellingham, MA 02019.
Arrangements are by Hess-Miller Funeral Home, 64-19 Metropolitan Ave, Middle Village, N.Y. 11379.
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