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| Vernon Bramel (October 9, 1935 - April 5, 2025) |
Vernon William Bramel, Jr., 89, of Danville, Kentucky died peacefully in the early hours of April 5, 2025 at the Morning Pointe Alzheimer's Center in Danville.
Vernon was born in Bettsville, Ohio on October 9, 1935 to Vernon and Marietta (Semer) Bramel, the youngest of five brothers. He is survived by one brother, Malcolm Earl Bramel (Katherine) of Charlottesville, Virginia, and a sister, Sally Darlene (Michael) Kear of Sebring, Florida. Vernon was preceded in death by his parents and three brothers, Richard Eugene Bramel, Charles Everett Bramel, and George Raymond Bramel.
Vernon graduated from Bettsville High School and was active in the athletics programs there. He proudly played point guard for the undefeated Seneca County champion basketball team in 1954. He worked before school making donuts at the Pie House Restaurant, and in the summertime, he was one of the first lifeguards at the H.P. Eells Park near the village. Vernon enlisted in the Army after high school and left for basic training at Fort Knox, Kentucky. He returned home and married his high school sweetheart, Sharon Lee Jeanette, on December 9, 1954 in Auburn, Indiana. The couple recently celebrated their 70th anniversary, and she was there by his side when he passed.
Vernon returned to Fort Knox for additional training before deploying to Heidelberg, Germany for a three-year assignment at 5th Surgical Hospital (Mobile Unit) Headquarters section, where he was honored as Soldier of the Month. "Private First Class Bramel's performance of duty, his off-duty habits, immaculate manner of dress, gentlemanly conduct, and soldierly manner are beyond reproach, and have served both as an inspiration to his section, and the unit as well."
Upon completion of his service, Vernon returned to Bettsville, where he and Sharon raised five sons and one daughter. He attended college at nearby Tiffin University, where he also played for the school's basketball team while working as a bookkeeper at local businesses. His newfound love of golf led to new affiliations that opened the door for career opportunities. For the sake of his family, he passed up an opportunity to become one of the founding fathers of the Nature Trails Golf Course where he won multiple club championships through the 1970s.
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Vernon worked for the Whirlpool Corporation in Clyde, Ohio for much of his career. In 1979, a transfer opportunity resulted in the family's relocation to Danville, where the three younger children graduated from Boyle County High School. He attended many sports functions there, following the exploits of his children and grandchildren. His golf prowess earned him several honors at the Danville County Club. After retirement, Vern and Sharon vacationed frequently in Central Florida. They were among the very first residents of the Ridgefield Farms community in Danville.
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| 60thAnniversary 2014 |
Along with their many grandchildren and great-grandchildren, all six children of Vern and Sharon survive: Mike (Kathy) of Upper Sandusky, Ohio; Randy (Joan) of Bardstown, Kentucky; Rodney (Peggy) of Kirkland, Washington; Kurt of Baltimore, Maryland; Kerry (Eric) of Danville; and Steve (Katy) of Danville.
Military funeral honors and interment will be scheduled at Camp Nelson National Cemetery for a later date.
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Text of Eulogy, 25 Apr 2025, Camp Nelson National Cemetery, Jessamine County, Kentucky
SOLDIER OF THE MONTH
OCTOBER 1956
Private First Class VERNON WILLIAM BRAMEL
"Excellent and beyond criticism" are the words that have been used to describe PFC Vernon Bramel's work since he has been a member of the 5th Surgical Hospital (Mobile Army) Headquarters section.
Private First Class Bramel was born at Bettsville, Ohio on the 9th of October, 1935. He graduated from the Bettsville High School in June, 1954. PFC Bramel is married and is the proud father of a fine son.
PFC Bramel entered the service on the 22nd of September, 1954, and underwent his basic training at Fort Knox, Kentucky.
Following basic training, PFC Bramel spent the next eight weeks at the Division Training Center, Fort Knox, Kentucky. He arrived in Germany on the lst of March, 1955, and was assigned to our unit; the 5th Surgical Hospital (Mobile Army). Once assigned to our unit, he was attached to Headquarters Section, where he is assigned as personnel clerk. He was promoted to his present rank in July, 1955.
PFC Bramel's performance of duty, his off-duty habits, immaculate manner of dress, gentlemanly conduct, and soldierly manner are beyond reproach, and have served both as an inspiration to his section, and the unit as well. Congratulations on being selected soldier of the month by the non-commissioned officers of the 5th Surgical Hospital (MA). Keep up the fine work .....
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Ladies and gentlemen, friends, family, and neighbors, we’re gathered here today to bid a fond farewell to Vernon Bramel — our dad, our papa, uncle, friend, colleague, and the steadfast husband who walked hand-in-hand with his bride of seven decades. Now, when my parents prepared their final wishes a few years back, they didn't want a fancy send off. Even this brief statement might have been perceived as "over-the-top." But something needed to be said, and I've been bestowed with the honor of delivering a few quick stories to paint you a picture of the man we loved.
Let me start with a memory, one I’d completely forgotten until I sat down to write these words. It’s a true tale, and I’d wager it’s news to all of you. When I was a lad of sixteen, Dad was offered a fine promotion—a chance to climb the corporate ladder, but it came with a catch. It meant uprooting the whole Bramel clan from our little village in northwest Ohio and transplanting in the rolling hills of the Bluegrass. Now, that was the only home we’d ever known—where Mom and Dad were raised, where their folks still lived, and where my three older brothers had already crossed the high school stage, diplomas in hand. Before he broke the news to the rest of the family, Dad pulled me aside, “Son,” he said, “you’ve got two years left until you graduate, and a move like this would hit you harder than the others. If you want to stay put, if you don’t want to change schools, I’ll turn down the offer, and we’ll keep our feet planted right here.” Well, you know how it turned out—I gave him my blessing, and before long, I was a Junior at Boyle County, Kerry was a Freshman, Steve was in seventh grade, and here we all are, right?
It doesn't take a philosopher to see how one choice can send ripples through a lifetime, changing the course of a whole lot of folks. Dad made plenty such decisions, always with his family first in his heart. He didn’t have to do any of it, but he did, and I'd say things turned out for the best.
Now, Vernon Bramel came from humble stock; his folks had enough for the bare necessities, but little more. As a teen, he’d rise before the roosters to make donuts at the local eatery, just to afford a sharp pair of trousers. The Bramel house lacked many niceties, such as an indoor privy and a shower, so he’d scrub up in the school locker room. That little school of ours had its moment in the sun, too, and Dad never tired of bragging about that undefeated Bobcats basketball team that clinched the county championship—though he’d swear on a stack of Bibles that the refs robbed them in the district playoffs.
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| "Pebbles" Bramel #4 far left |
After high school, he followed his four brothers into the armed services, marching off to Germany and back. When he returned, he enrolled at Tiffin University, compliments of Uncle Sam and the GI Bill. Mom always said the Army's ways turned him fussy and particular—he was the only one who could fold a bedsheet corner sharp enough to suit himself and Mom's side was never quite up to snuff. But I believe he was born with that streak, and it only grew with age. In his later years, he’d sometimes shave multiple times per day, read the instructions on a new gadget until the ink wore thin, and underline them for good measure. Thrifty? Oh yeah. He’d buy restaurant gift cards on 4X fuel point days and orchestrate the Bramel caravan at the gas pump before the points could expire, squeezing every drop of savings out of the maximum 35 gallons. I'm confident there's still a stack of gift cards stashed away for safekeeping in a place he long ago forgot about.
My folks raised us to stand on our own two feet, handing us just enough tools to wander out into the universe while leaving plenty of mysteries for us to chase. But there was always a comfort, like a warm quilt on a winter night, knowing Mom and Dad would move heaven and earth if we stumbled. My brother Randy recalls golfing with Dad as a young fellow, pleading for strokes to level the playing field—Dad was a regular wizard with a nine-iron, you see, although maybe not so great with the putter. “No strokes,” Dad would say. “Just play better.” It wasn’t just about golf; it was about being a better man.
Come Sunday, you’d find Dad on the golf course, his holy ground, where the fairways whispered peace to his soul. But he was a man of faith in his quiet way, praying each night for his family, his great grandson Wes or anyone else wrestling with affliction. Folks often asked the secret to his long marriage with Mom. “Never hold a grudge,” he’d say, simple as that. Mom told me when times got lean, he’d comfort her and promise, “Hang in there, my love, because we’re gonna have a grand retirement.” And by God, they did.
As the years piled up, Dad started talking more about going home. He’d dream of seeing his own mom and dad, and sometimes he’d wake from a nap, holler “EARL BRAMEL!”—his brother’s name—for no reason at all, then drift back to sleep. I recall the first time I noticed his mind slipping a few years ago, when he swore the NBA had up and changed the playoff rules, though nothing was different. Even when the games on TV turned to a complete jumble in his head, it was still a comfort to sit beside him, sharing the quiet of the moment.
I picture him now, strolling off the 18th green, his swing as smooth as ever, with the whole heavenly clubhouse waiting to pat him on the back. It pains us to let him go, but our hearts are full with gratitude for the years we had, how fortunate we have been that he was our dad. Vernon Bramel was a man who lived plain, loved deep, and left us all a little better for knowing him. And if that's not a life well-lived, I don’t know what is. -Kurt Bramel 4/25/2025
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