Lea Irene Berta

Berta, Lea I. (Bernardi) January 29, 2022. Age 97. Beloved wife of the late Joseph. Loving mother of the late Joseph, Jr. (Barbara) Berta. Dear grandmother of James (Mindy) Berta and Jonathan (Shannon) Berta. Dear great grandmother of Madelynn, Zachary, and McKenzie. Loving sister of the late Mary Hodak who passed in 2021 at the age of 88. Lea was married 59 years to her loving husband Joe who passed in 2005 at the age of 89. Her son Joe Jr. passed in 2016 at the age of 68. She retired from the Wayne County Sheriff’s Department as an account clerk. Before that, she worked as an admitting clerk then an account clerk at Wayne County General Hospital before it closed. Lea made friends everywhere she worked and resided. She had the gift of gab with a warm, welcoming presence. No one was a stranger for long because she took a genuine interest in everyone. She was affectionately referred to as “Mother” Lea with some of the younger female employees. Needless to say, she remained friends with them long past her retirement. She loved to cook and have friends and family over to share a good meal. Everyone loved her cooking, and she typically served the food with a big “Mangia!” She was an avid reader mostly of mysteries—a big Mary Higgins Clark fan; but she was also up on her history, current events, and politics and would enjoy a good conversation with you about any of them. She loved to visit Stratford, Canada every year to enjoy plays and musicals with her sister Mary, niece Andrea, and friend Toni Smith. Her favorite trip was with her sister to Italy to visit family and to experience the Oberammergau Passion Play in Germany. The owner and staff at Agape Residential in Allen Park provided exceptional love and care to her the last three years of her life. It meant a lot to her to reside at such a wonderful place by people who genuinely cared for her. Her vibrant spirit, spunkiness, and warm-hearted ways will be sorely missed. She lived a good, long life and was ready for the next life to be in the real presence of Christ and to be reunited with so many who passed before her. Memorial Mass 11:00 am (luncheon following) on Monday, March 14, 2022 at St. Kateri Catholic Church, 16101 Rotunda Drive, Dearborn, MI. Inurnment at Our Lady of Hope Cemetery, Brownstown Charter Twp. In lieu of flowers or donations, your presence, a note of sympathy, and/or a memory to share would be much appreciated and cherished. Correspondence can be directed to Andrea Brink, her niece, at andreabrink@sbcglobal.net.