Justine C. (Bertrand) Ferrel

Justine Catherine (Bertrand) Ferrel, 82, of Clay passed away on February 13, 2024. Justine was born December 2, 1941, in East Syracuse, NY, to Sherman and Laura (Ruszczyk) Bertrand. She was a 1959 graduate of East Syracuse High School, where she was voted “Most Talkative” by her class.

She spent over a decade working at Carrier Corp., where she met the love of her life, John, whom she married in 1974 in Tulsa, OK. She worked for Dictaphone in Tulsa, then became a devoted stay-at-home mother after the birth of her daughter Laura. Justine and John missed being close to family, so they returned to Central New York in 1979, settling in Clay, and their daughter Dana was born in Syracuse.

Justine was an avid bowler and Bunco player, and she spent many happy years volunteering at Bear Road Elementary School in North Syracuse, pitching in as a room mother, assisting with early computer training, helping with the annual Craft Fair, and supporting the Apple Muffin Gang with everything from wrangling muffins to chaperoning Albany trips. She enjoyed monthly get-togethers with childhood friends and regular Friday lunches with her sisters. Justine was a devoted wife, mother, grandmother, and friend, and she will be dearly missed.

She was predeceased by her sister, Corinne Kurgan and brother-in-law, Stanley Kurgan and her brother, Richard Bertrand (Therese).

Justine is survived by her husband of almost 50 years, John; daughters, Laura Ferrel and Dana Dwyer (Michael); cherished granddaughter, Avery Dwyer; siblings, Sherman Bertrand (Sheila), Patricia Baum (Warren), and George Bertrand (Patricia); as well as many nieces, nephews, and cousins.

Calling hours will be held on Tuesday, February 20, 2024, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Sears Middleton Mathewson Funeral Home, 209 N. Main St., North Syracuse. A funeral Mass will be held at St. Matthew’s Church, East Syracuse, on Wednesday, February 21, 2024, at 11 a.m. Burial will be in St. Mary’s Cemetery, Minoa.

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