Bernie Bumble, Award Winning Crossing Guard

Bernie Bumble with his New Stop Sign and Police Whistle which he Gladly Blows on Demand.

Bernie Bumble helps children cross the street on their way to school. This has been his passion for the past twelve years - a passion recently rewarded with the nearly prestigious ‘Crossing Guard of the Year Award’ given by Cloverdale’s Police Department.

Bernie and his wife Della Bumble, Ticket Agent at Cloverdale's Train Station (see the post on The Coastal Express) attended the luncheon held in his honor at The Hairy Lemon on the High Street in Cloverdale. Bernie is a regular at The Hairy Lemon Pub. He enjoys the friendly atmosphere, the quaint decor, and the dozen or so lemon inspired drinks offered on the menu.

The Hairy Lemon

Every Tuesday and Saturday Bernie and Della meet their friends at the Hairy Lemon for small talk, drinks, supper and darts. Their Pub Nights start with a lemon daiquiri for Bernie and a lemon sarsaparilla for Della. Bernie usually orders a Shepherd's Pie for his supper. Della enjoys the soup of the day along with a turkey sandwich and chips. Laughter fills the Pub as the night ages, and with the laughter comes music from various local bands brought in by the manager.
“Laughter and Music go hand in hand here at The Hairy Lemon,” says Loren Nape, night manager of the pub and lead singer of The Crows, one of the local groups that perform on stage twice a week. Bernie enjoys The Crows. He says they play a perfect mixture of folk tunes and hits from the big band era. If his knees are agreeable, Bernie and Della will creak our of their chairs and shuffle a jig or two on the dance floor. If Della is in good form she will dance a very believable Jitterbug. Bernie does his best to keep up but sometimes can only stand semi-still and move his hips back and forth. Della dances around him while their friends whistle and holler.

Della cutting the rug at The Hairy Lemon.
Bernie is in the back playing darts.

The evening ends with both doing what they love. Bernie shoots darts and Della and the girls talk and dance with the younger fellas. After a quick night cap they walk home arm in arm like two young lovers on a moon lit night. They are inseparable.

Bernie’s Luncheon was attended by several local dignitaries including the school’s Board of Governors, the Police Chief, and many students that somehow managed to talk their parents out of a day at school. After eating, the small gathering was called to order by the Police Chief. He read a long speech on the qualities and duties of a crossing guard and then correlated those qualities with Bernie, proving the selection committee made the right choice for awarding Bernie ‘Crossing Guard of the Year’.

The luncheon ended with Bernie standing to acknowledge the gathering’s warm applause. Afterwards, he was presented with a golden cup, a gift certificate for a free meal at The Hairy Lemon, a new hand held STOP sign and a new police whistle. Bernie was speechless, so Della stood up and thanked everyone for attending and thanked the selection committee for rewarding her husband’s dedication to the children of Cloverdale. Bernie highlighted his wife’s brief remarks by tooting his new police whistle when she finished. It brought another round of applause.

Friends, I give you Bernie Bumble, an award winning crossing guard, a regular at The Hairy Lemon, and devoted husband to Della. May he live long and protect our children with his every watchful eye and much admired police whistle.