Middletown, NJ – Born in New York City and raised in Maywood, NJ. Bernard “Bernie” Boland was an an American Classic.
At seventeen, Bernie enlisted in the United States Air Force. He followed two generations of military service: his grandfather served in World War I, and his father served in World War II.
He volunteered for air and sea rescue in Vietnam. For four years, he parachuted from airplanes and rappelled from helicopters to rescue downed pilots.
After his military service, Bernie returned home and joined his father, brother, and uncles in dock building and construction, including work on the downed World Trade Center.
He was a builder in every sense of the word. He built structures, businesses, relationships, and a life centered around hard work, determination, and family. Bernie also made room in his life for one of his great passions: harness racing.
He trained and raced his own horses, founded the American Harness Racing Club at Freehold Raceway, which still exists today, and he competed in many foreign venues as an ambassador for our sport.
He loved the horses, the competition, the camaraderie, the travel, and the excitement that came with race day. Harness racing brought him enormous joy and became an important part of the life he built for himself beyond work and family. It gave him another adventure to pursue, another community to enjoy, and countless stories and memories that stayed with him throughout his life.
But for all his accomplishments, work, and adventures, family was always at the heart of Bernie’s life.
He raised two children and was their biggest fan. He rarely missed a sporting event, competition, or important moment. He was there keeping time, cheering from the sidelines, and supporting whatever his children chose to pursue.
For fifty-six years, Bernie was a loving and devoted husband of his lovely wife Paula. Fifty-six years of commitment, partnership, shared experiences, challenges, laughter, family, and a life built together.
Bernie’s life was truly admirable: service to country, courage, work ethic, entrepreneurial spirit, sense of adventure, devotion to family and friends and love of harness racing. He was a fixture at Freehold and Scioto Downs for years.
Bernie leaves behind a legacy that cannot be measured in buildings constructed, races won, places traveled, or years worked. His greatest legacy lives in the family he loved, Bernie is survived by his wife Paula, Son Matthew, daughter Rachel and three grandchildren.