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Consultant and Bridges4Kids Board
President Bernie Travnikar (right) with Special Ed
Attorney and Bridges4Kids Secretary/Treasurer John
Brower (left) |
Bridges4Kids,
October 7, 2008
It is with sadness and a sense of disbelief
that we share news of the passing on September 26, 2008 of
Bernie Travnikar, our Governing Board President, supporter and
friend.
Bernie was one of the founding mentors of Bridges4Kids. His
counsel and vision helped guide us from the very beginning and
he has been there for us every step of the way during the past
six years. His is a life of accomplishment and so full that it
is hard to know where to start as we try to tell you about the
man we knew.
Bernie was unique and he was genuine. Talk to anyone who knew
him and all will agree that a hallmark of Bernie’s life was his
care and concern for others. Whenever Bernie found himself in a
position to help someone else, he did. He gave of himself
selflessly and he regularly went above and beyond the call of
duty and job descriptions. If you needed him, he tried to move
heaven and earth to be there. As a result, he had friends
everywhere – parents, students, teachers, administrators,
federal and state regulators, colleagues of all types and fellow
life travelers.
Those friends will also tell you that Bernie loved life and
lived it to the fullest. He and Kathie took wonderful, annual
trips to Italy and he shared their adventures and experiences
with friends new and old. He shared his love of Kathie, his
soulmate. He often said that he was the luckiest man alive to
have her as his partner. He had a curious mind and was
fascinated by ancient burial grounds and traveled near and far
to see them. Ancient mysteries, too, he found intriguing. He was
constantly on the go and when he wasn’t working on
education/therapy projects, he and Kathie were working on what
seemed like, from the stories he told, a perpetual work in
progress as they turned their house and studio into a little
corner of heaven on earth. His smile was infectious, he was
upbeat and optimistic -- and he laughed
Bernie began his career at the Pontiac State Hospital,
Michigan’s second largest psychiatric hospital which was
eventually closed in the 1990’s and demolished in 2000. At
Pontiac he worked as an attendant, child care worker and
activities therapist and his service there helped shape his
later career as a tireless advocate for children with
disabilities and special needs. He later became a therapist for
Macomb County Community Mental Health, the Founding Director of
the Oakland Schools Autistic Program, the Director of Special
Education for the Lamphere School District, and the Principal of
Lessenger Elementary School. After forming Travnikar Innovation
Resources, he became a highly sought after consultant and was
asked to serve as the Interim Assistant Director of Special
Education for the Oakland Schools and as the Interim Director of
Special Services for the Westwood Schools.
Wherever Bernie went, he connected with people and did his best
to help them connect with each other. He brought people together
in the workplace by reaching out to help colleagues become
friends and he was famous for coordinating the hospitality that
helped colleagues from around the state raise a glass or two
together at CEC and MAASE annual meetings.
He generously gave his time and talent to help support
organizations that helped others.
In addition to serving six years as the President of the
Bridges4Kids Governing Board, he was the founder and Chair of
the Michigan Positive Behavior Support Network, served many
years as the Chair of the Board of Directors of the
Macomb-Oakland Regional Center, was the Chair of the
Professional Advisory Board of the Learning Disabilities
Association of Michigan, the Michigan President of the Council
for Children with Behavior Disorders, the Treasurer of the
Michigan Chapter of the Council for Administrators of Special
Education, a Professional Advisory Board Member of the Tourette
Syndrome Association, Board Member of the Michigan Association
for Children with Emotional Disorders and was Past President of
the Wayne State University Chapter of Phi Delta Kappa.
Bernie also chaired Michigan’s Special Education Advisory
Committee, the Special Education Personnel Development Advisory
Committee and was Chair of Michigan’s ADHD Task Force. He was
awarded a Teaching Award in 2006 from the Michigan Association
for Children with Emotional Disorders, was recognized as a
pioneer in the field of special education by the Michigan
Council for Exceptional Children, and received a Distinguished
Service Award from the ARC of Oakland County.
Bernie was passionate about the effectiveness of positive
behavior support as a means to address student behavior
challenges and the responses of adults. In Michigan he was known
as “Mr. PBS.” He served as the Director of the Michigan
Department of Education’s Positive Behavior Support Initiative
and later became a Positive Behavior Support Coach for the St.
Clair County RESA and a Positive Behavior Support consultant to
the Detroit Public Schools. He never gave up on his quest to
help parents and schools find common ground through a better
understanding of a child’s behavior.
Along the way Bernie coordinated graduate studies at Madonna
University and taught as an adjunct faculty member at Wayne
State University and Oakland University. As if that weren’t
enough, during the past two years, Bernie also became an
educational consultant for the Open Society Mental Health
Initiative of Budapest, Hungary. In his trips to Eastern Europe,
he sought to bring more inclusion to those with disabilities
through a sharing of knowledge and experience.
Bernie was committed to changing the world for the better and in
that he so richly succeeded. If he were here, we’re sure he
would be justifiably proud of his many recognized
accomplishments, but he would likely tell you that his most
satisfying work centered on the lives he touched and changed as
he worked one on one as a therapist, consultant, educator and
friend to help make life easier for countless youngsters with
disabilities and their families. He legacy lives on in the many
programs he helped found or nurture, in the lives of those he
helped and in the hearts of his many, many friends.
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