BERNICE SNYDER SOLAR SILBERLING

Bernice Snyder Solar Antopol Silberling was as extraordinary as her list of last names. She didn't see herself as such, however. She thought of herself as ordinary, plain. Yet Bernice was wed three times and had three biological children and five step-children who were as devoted to her as if she were their own mother. She was also a grandmother to eight grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Bernice may have thought she was an ordinary joe, but that ordinary joe had an extraordinary capacity for love.

Bernice Snyder was born in Southgate, California on April 11, 1925. She was the youngest of three children and was spoiled by her immigrant parents, Rose and Rudolph Snyder and her siblings,, Gertrude and Paul (deceased). They often called her "Boo-boo." "Boo-boo" grew up happy and carefree. When WWII began, she married her teenage sweetheart, Everett Solar, moved around the country for his military career and started a family. Unfortunately, after eleven years, the marriage fell apart and the couple divorced. That was the darkest period of Bernice's life. She moved back to Los Angeles to be near her parents and siblings, and for the first time in her life, Bernice had to support a family. She got a job at Gibraltar Savings and Loan in Beverly Hills. For one year, Bernice would often tell her children, she collected money deposits and stuffed them in a sack behind her desk. That's the way it was done in those days.

In 1959, Bernice met Morris Antopol, a charming widower who had three children. Theirs was a whirlwind romance, and the couple tied the knot in October, 1959. Bernice was now mother to six children. Bernice and Morris lived in a small 1100 square foot home in Lakewood, California, with eight people and one bathroom. Fortunately, Bernice's father, Rudy, was a carpenter and built on a primary suite in the back of the house. She loved Morris' children as her own and they worshipped her as well.

Twenty-five years later, Morris died and again, Bernice was left on her own. This time, however, the children were grown and she didn't have to struggle to find work. Like a knight in shining armor, Morris' best friend, Larry Silberling swept Bernice off her feet. He had two children who had grown up with Bernice, and the added benefit of two grandchildren as well. Again, Bernice treated all as her own, and they doted on her as well.

Bernice and Larry were married for 30 years. They traveled, danced, sang and laughed, a lot. Theirs was a romance for the storybooks. But all stories come to an end, and Larry died in 2018. Everyone thought Bernice would soon join him, but Bernice was too full of life. She lived to almost 100 years old and remained as cheerful and carefree as when she was a child at home with her parents and siblings. She was always friendly, upbeat, and forever singing.

Bernice died January 14, 2025, three months shy of her 100th birthday. Her favorite line was, "Why worry? It might not happen."

Bernice is survived by her eight children and their spouses: Diana Schmidt, Leona Solar, Marcia Antopol and Jeff Moskin, Dick Antopol, Marcia Solar and Lutz Kopke, Julia Antopol Hirsch and Lonnie Hirsch, Terry and Mark Fierle and Barbara Cohen. Bernice's eight grandchildren (and their spouses) are Michelle Solar Adams and April Adams, Joshua and Jenny Solar, Molly Antopol and Chanan Tigay, Joscha Kopke and Hannah Rosenstein, Adam Hirsch, Lili Hirsch, Marisa and Steven Hamvay, and Nicole and Rob Pedregon . Her great-grandchildren include Max Solar, Ava Solar, Lia Solar, Nellie Tigay, Bessie Tigay, and Lev Rosenstein.

Arrangements: Cullen Funeral Home Inc., Raymore, Missouri 816.322.5278