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On  June 4, 2005 Butch's younger brother Frank Messina passed away.

Frank Messina, Sr.

 August 7, 1926 - June 4, 2005

click picture to read about His Life

On  August 7, 2005 Butch's nephew Eugene Bernardo passed away. 

He was  59 Years old.  

He was Greatly Loved and will be Greatly Missed.

In Loving Memory

Gene Bernardo

 November 26, 1945 - August 7, 2005

Eugene Bernardo, 59, of West Long Branch, N.J., a former Rosebank resident and tattoo artist, died yesterday in Monmouth Medical Center, Long Branch.

Born in Brooklyn, Mr. Bernardo moved to Rosebank as a young child. He moved to New Jersey 22 years later and settled in West Long Branch two years ago.

Mr. Bernardo, who attended New Dorp High School, was a plumber by trade, but he soon found his passion in the art of tattooing, a career he enjoyed for 35 years. His family said that his tattoo shop, Gene's Body Art World, which he opened in 1971 in Asbury Park, N.J., is New Jersey's oldest tattoo shop. The business has since grown to include five locations throughout the state. A member of the National Tattoo Association. Mr. Bernardo's clients included the musician Greg Allman and the wrestler Bam-Bam Bigelow, according to his family.

An avid fisherman, Mr. Bernardo was vice president of the Asbury Park Fishing Club, where he was also a proud member of the "Sopranos," a group within that club.

He was a volunteer coordinator for Half Measures, Inc., where he organized Thanksgiving and Christmas events and served meals to the homeless.

His son, Anthony V., said his father was a great role model who showed him the man he wants to become.

Mr. Bernardo loved his large family, and played a big role in raising a niece and two nephews who lived with him.

He also loved to cook, and his family fondly remembered his sausage manicotti.

Mr. Bernardo served in the Navy from 1962 until 1964, stationed in New Jersey.

In addition to his wife, Nikoletta, and sons, Eugene and Anthony, surviving are two brothers, Francis and Robert, and a sister, Rosemarie Walsh.

The funeral will be Wednesday at 10 a.m. in the Francioni, Taylor & Lopez Funeral Home, Neptune. Arrangements include cremation.