PARSIPPANY — Bernard Joseph Berkowitz, affectionately known as “Bernie” and as “Boppi” by his grandchildren, passed away Monday afternoon at Morristown Medical Center following an extended illness. He was 81.
Born in Newark and raised in Union, Bernie later lived in Boston before settling in Parsippany in 1973 — a community he would serve and love for the rest of his life.
He earned his Bachelor’s Degree from Rutgers University in 1967 and his Juris Doctorate from Suffolk Law School in 1970. It was in Boston, while working at a law firm, that he met his future wife, the former Barbara Jean Haddock. After a two-year courtship, the couple married on November 25, 1970 and shared 55 wonderful years of marriage.
Mr. Berkowitz began his private practice, Bernard J. Berkowitz, Attorney at Law, in Parsippany in 1977. He later partnered to form Berkowitz & Raiken in Montville Township, where he practiced for 15 years before retiring in 2013. Bernie loved the law, and was proud to have served as a Municipal Court Judge for the Township of Parsippany-Troy Hills, the Borough of Rockaway, and Netcong for 12 years.
A devoted father and community volunteer, Bernie coached Par-Troy Little League Baseball, Softball, and Soccer, and was an avid supporter and volunteer with the Parsippany High School Marching Band Association. He was a longtime member and former president of both the Parsippany Jaycees and Kiwanis Club of Greater Parsippany, served several terms on the Parsippany Board of Education and Board of Adjustment, served as attorney for the Parsippany Planning Board, and volunteered at the Parsippany Public Library.
Bernie will be remembered most for his kind and generous spirit and his dedication to his family. He loved planning family vacations to National Parks and Historic Sites, relaxing on cruises, and his annual trip to Jensen Beach. He was a lifelong Yankees fan who loved dancing to Neil Diamond in his living room — as long as it was with his daughter or grandchildren. His life motto: “Life is too short to take too seriously.”
Survivors include his beloved wife of 55 years, Barbara Berkowitz; his children, Brian Berkowitz of Parsippany, Gail Egan and her husband John of Rockaway Township, and Mark Berkowitz of Parsippany; his sister, Mindy Harris and her husband Bruce of Georgia; and four cherished grandchildren, Benjamin, Samuel, Hannah, and Daniel Egan. He was preceded in death by his grandson Joshua Egan and his brothers Cary Berlant and Harley Berlant.
Visitation will be held Monday, July 6, 2026 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at S.J. Priola Parsippany Funeral Service, 60 North Beverwyck Road, Lake Hiawatha. A Funeral Service and Celebration of Life will begin at 12:30 p.m. in the funeral home, with interment to follow at Gate of Heaven Cemetery in East Hanover.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial contributions be made to the grandchildren’s education fund at givesendgo.com/berkowitz-grandchildren-education-fund.
