Beatrice Scope Bergh Celona (nee B. Randolph Bailey)
January 1, 1917

In the Garden, But Not Alone

“I come to the garden alone. . . . “ was one of our mother’s favorite hymns. We can remember well her young clear voice as she sang the song to us as children. She liked to entertain us with songs from her past and her stack of 78 r.p.m. records and piano music sheets had titles like “Tie a little string around your finger,” “You’ll never know how much I love you” and “The Prisoner Song.” She often would play her songs on the piano. She was always very nostalgic for things in the past, but also had a sense of humor that helped sustain her through happy and sad times. She dearly loved us, encouraged us to succeed in our personal and professional endeavors and was a constant presence in our lives. Her boundless love also included her other great passions--for all the world’s critters and the beauty of nature, especially flowers. We never remember her not having a garden. Her favorite plants included the Crepe Myrtle and climbing yellow roses. Her mother, Dorothy Bailey, nurtured Bea’s love of nature as a child growing up in the little town of Corbin City, New Jersey, with her sisters Norma (Tookie) and Dorothy and her dad Norman. Her childhood home had a lily pond surrounded by big willows, magnolias and beds of beautiful flowers. There were always beloved pets around her throughout her life, including Wolfie (a homeless dog), Fearless Fosdick (a broken sparrow) and her most precious pet, Princess (a silver Persian cat). But the list of all her animals includes many nameless strays and hurt creatures that she lovingly nursed back to health or comforted in their suffering. She was a generous donor to many charities for cats and dogs. She had friends around the region who shared her passion for God’s creatures.

Beatrice loved life. She told funny stories about her short work experiences as a switchboard operator, waitress and photographer’s assistant. In Ancora she made many lasting relationships and helped care for a flock of children while their parents worked at the State hospital. For many years, her favorite things were riding her bicycle down Spring Garden Road, watching romantic movies like “Dr. Zhivago,” visiting gardens, reading her paper at night and doing the crossword puzzles, going for car rides on the back roads of South Jersey, eating at her favorite restaurants like the Tuckahoe Inn and Crab Trap, visiting the Jersey shore and eating custard swirls and drinking black and white milkshakes. Gary and Donna remember so many happy times with her as children and later as adults sharing her enjoyment in the little things of life.

As Beatrice grew older, Gary brought her into his home and they lived many years together. Trips to Cape May, Mexico and even to Aruba were wonderful memories for them, but their favorite memories were sharing meals together and saying good night to each other--using their secret code of chirps. They ventured several times to Portland, Oregon, to visit with Donna and her family—one was a very treasured visit to meet her new great grand daughter. The family kept in touch by phone and in the last decade through annual trips from Oregon to New Jersey.

No matter how long a loved one’s life is, we always would choose more years together, if we could, but we can be comforted in knowing that Beatrice did not suffer and will be reunited with her many loving friends and family members in heaven—the ultimate garden of beauty. Her deep spiritual ties to religion include her childhood participation in the choir at the Methodist church in Corbin City, her baptism as a young woman accepting Jesus as her savior and her conversion, along with her mother, to the Seventh Day Adventist congregation in Pleasantville and later in Newtonville.

Beatrice passed away on April 24, 2017. She survived three husbands. Her young marriage to Stanley Scope was very short, but she remembered him always. She later married John Bergh in 1949 and moved to Venice Park near Atlantic City. They then moved to Ancora where they lovingly raised their young family. Beatrice married a third time, to John Celona, and they lived in a pretty little home in Hammonton with a big garden. She is survived by her daughter Donna Randolph Bergh-Davis; her son Gary Bailey Bergh; her two grandsons, Timur and Tamer Kiykioglu and their spouses Juli and Heather; and her great grand daughter, Ella Kiykioglu.

Beatrice will be buried next to her parents at the historical Head of the River Cemetery in New Jersey. In the center of the cemetery stands a little white church where her parents were married. She long enjoyed visiting the quaint cemetery where the lives of so many of her relatives are marked by headstones. Up until two years ago, she sang, celebrated the church’s anniversary, and shared in the annual community picnics hosted in the cemetery.

Beatrice was a true South Jersey girl who never strayed far from her roots. We loved her very much.

Donna Randolph Kiykioglu Davis (nee Bergh), Daughter
Gary Bailey Bergh, Son

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Beatrice Scope Bergh Celona (Bailey), please visit our Heartfelt Sympathies Store.