Cannons and Candy
By Madilynn Schumann, his great granddaughter
Robert John Bernacchi
December 5, 1920 – February 15, 2006
Robert with three of his brothers and their father in 1945. (Photo courtesy of Robert Bernacchi Jr.)
Hen-shaped chocolates, perfume, “affy-tapples,”[1] Famous Yodora Deodorant Cream for 29 cents,[2] handmade cordial cherries, cough drops: all this and more lined the shelves at the Bernacchi Pharmacies where Robert Bernacchi and his brothers carried on their parents' legacy. Starting from his birth in 1920, most of Robert’s life revolved around the family business; however, Robert also spent a portion of youth serving in World War II. As a child, he was taught by his father, Lorenzo, to stand up to bullies, whether those bullies were the Nazis of his adulthood or the “pay for protection” gang of his infancy.[3] Sometimes after the original Bernacchi candy store was opened, Lorenzo could no longer defend his store and family from thugs with his baseball bat.[4] Rather than be extorted, the family moved their business to Kenosha, Wisconsin. Lorenzo taught his family the importance of doing whatever necessary to protect one’s family, and Robert would carry that lesson with him throughout his life. In Kenosha, he would continue to learn more physical skills such as pulling taffy, hunting rabbits, and running a business.
Robert was fortunate enough to grow up as the second youngest of five children and had a fond childhood despite growing up during the Great Depression. Christmas was, in particular, an incredibly special time of year for the Bernacchi family. Despite their usual diets of makeshift Bolognese sauces transformed from the crows, fish, and rabbits that Robert and his brothers hunted after school, the family forgot all their worries during Christmas.[5] Robert’s parents and older brothers would save all year and stay up on Christmas Eve, transforming the house into a magical Christmas wonderland. The young children would wake up Christmas morning and see tables of baked goods, a fully decorated Christmas tree, wrapped gifts, and they could not help but believe in the magic of Christmas and Santa Claus.[6] As he grew up, Robert realized this was truly a beautiful and selfless act of love, and a tradition that he would continue with his own children.
Robert was able to attend college, unlike some of his brothers who had to work to support the family. He went to the University of Mississippi on a full-ride football scholarship and he registered for the army a few months after the attack on Pearl Harbor.[7] He trained at Fort Sill and was given dispensation to finish his schooling before entering into combat. During that time he married his college girlfriend, Kate Hamley, and found out they were having their first child. However this joy was short-lived as Robert was immediately sent to Germany to fight after he completed his degree in 1945. In the Army, he worked the Howitzer artillery cannons as a part of the Third United States Army under General George Patton. Robert became a Sergeant in a matter of months.[8] He fought at the Battle of the Bulge and was a part of the ensuing advance into Germany. George Patton, known by his nickname “Old Blood and Guts,” was tireless in his battle against the German forces and his soldiers were often exhausted, but their widespread respect and love for him kept them going.[9] Although being present in many combat situations, Robert was never injured except once while cutting barbed wire and scratching open his hand.[10] The most lasting trauma was to his hearing and to his emotional and mental wellbeing.
Robert and his mother, Mary in 1945. (Photo courtesy of Robert Bernacchi Jr.) Fort Sill 1945
Robert operating a radio during his time in the military circa 1944. (Photo courtesy of Robert Bernacchi Jr.)
After the war ended, Robert still had time left in his service and was left stationed in Germany and Poland. While arresting remaining German soldiers, Robert had to disarm a Gestapo Colonel in his home. Robert kept that Gestapo officer’s gun and eventually passed it down to his son Peter. As arrests slowed down, Robert’s battalion was on “identification and burial duty” at POW camps and concentration camps.[11] He spent months cleaning half burned bodies out of the ovens and trying to identify deceased men, women, and children. His son, Peter, remains awed by his father’s ability to remain a kind and gentle man despite experiencing these horrors. When asked if he regretted enlisting in the Army, Robert said that it had to be done and that he never regretted it.[12]
Robert and his first wife, Kate, around the time of their marriage in 1944. (Photo courtesy of Robert Bernacchi Jr.)
Robert returned from his service to his wife and their family. He took his place in the family business running the Bernacchi stores, and he helped them expand to include pharmacies, soda shops, grills, and convenience stores in five different locations. The stores never stopped offering their homemade candies, but they became so much more than a simple candy shop. The Bernacchi Pharmacies became the setting for Kenosha’s social scene. Whether one needed to grab lunch, shop for cosmetics, buy their prescription, or enjoy a sweet treat, everyone eventually found their way to the Bernacchi’s family stores.
Tragedy struck when Robert’s wife passed away, leaving him the single father of four children. For five years, Robert struggled to maintain his business while balancing his fatherly duties and a revolving door of irresponsible live-in nannies.[13] Soon, Robert was able to open his heart up once again, this time to Margaret “Peggy” Solom. Peggy was a “spitfire, rebel, trouble-maker. . . independent, ‘I don’t need a man’” type of woman.[14] She flew Piper Cub airplanes in her free time and was friends with Robert’s older brother, Deino, making her a regular at the pharmacy. Robert and Peggy knew each other for many years before Kate died. Robert hated her “tough loudmouth” attitude and Peggy returned the disdain, but Peggy softened her heart and tough attitude after Kate’s passing.[15] Over time they both grew and changed and fell in love. Peggy became the stepmother to four children when she married Robert in 1956. They would have their own child, Peter, less than a year later.[16]
A portrait of Robert in the 1950’s. (Photo courtesy of Robert Bernacchi Jr.)
An advertisement for the fifth and final Bernacchi Pharmacy found in the Kenosha News newspaper.
“A ‘Grand’ Opening Welcome to All,” The Kenosha News, September 25, 1964.
Robert was an expert candy maker and taught his kids how to pull taffy, dip chocolates, make caramels, and more. When tempering chocolate, Peter recalls how his father did it by mixing the chocolate with his hand so he could gauge the temperature correctly. He would then scoop the chocolate with his hand and pour it into steel molds where it would solidify into whimsical shapes. He taught his children how to dip cordial cherries and caramels into the chocolate so that there were perfect swirls on top. Candy making took long hours and Robert made sure to be at his store at six in the morning and only came home for dinner before closing at nine in the evening.[17] The Bernacchi Pharmacies were among the only stores open for a few hours on Easter and Christmas for last time shoppers. It was unheard of for Robert to close down the store or take a day off.
Despite the long hours and hard work, the Bernacchi Pharmacies could not withstand the competition from chain brand stores like Walgreens and Walmart. All the Bernacchi Pharmacies were bought by another small pharmacy chain before they too gave way to the corporations.[18] This hit the entire Bernacchi family hard, so Robert and Peggy decided to move to Colorado to find a fresh start and spend time with their kids and grandkids. They worked in business consulting and doted on their grandchildren for many years before passing away. Robert passed away February 15, 2006 and is buried with his wife Peggy in Fort Logan Cemetery.[19] Today he is remembered by his children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.
Footnotes ↓
[1] “A ‘Grand’ Opening Welcome to All,” The Kenosha News, September 25, 1964.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Peter Bernacchi, interview by Madilynn Schumann, Littleton, Colorado, July 18, 2021, DU VLP.
[4] Ibid.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Ibid.
[7] “U.S., World War II Draft Cards Young Men.” ancestry.com, entry for Robert John Bernacchi, Oxford, Mississippi, USA, image 250.
[8] Peter Bernacchi, interview by Madilynn Schumann, Littleton, Colorado, July 18, 2021, DU VLP.
[9] William E. Welsh, “How General Patton's Third Army Made Military History,” Warfare History Network, The National Interest, May 12, 2020, https://nationalinterest.org/blog/reboot/how- general-pattons-third-army-made-military-history-153656.
[10] Peter Bernacchi, interview by Madilynn Schumann, Littleton, Colorado, July 18, 2021, DU VLP.
[11] Ibid.
[12] Ibid.
[13] Ibid.
[14] Ibid.
[15] Ibid.
[16] Ibid.
[17] Ibid.
[18] Ibid.
[19] Ibid.
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