ZELONKA--Bernice Shepard. May 5, 1920 - June 7, 2019. Beloved wife, mother, grandmother and great-grand- mother, Bernice passed away peacefully from natural causes in Los Angeles. She was born and raised in the Bronx, NY. In 1936, at age 16 and at a time when it was a rarity for women to seek higher education, she entered Hunter College and earned a BA with a French major and a Spanish minor. She subsequently attended McGill University and later earned a MA Degree in French in 1968 under a joint program from Middlebury College and the Sorbonne in Paris. During the 1950's, she took additional courses at UCLA in order to earn her teaching credentials. These included California Life Credentials for Elementary, Secondary and Junior College instruction. Beginning in 1951, she taught school in the LA Unifed School District, initially at the elementary level and, from the 1960's until 1977, French and Spanish at Hamilton and Belmont High Schools. She received multiple teaching awards. Bernice married the love of her life, Benjamin Zelonka, in 1941. They moved from New York to Los Angeles in 1947, residing in Pacoima, Echo Park, Westwood and Silver Lake. Bernice and Ben raised two children, Carol and Arnold, in Westwood. They travelled abroad extensively and, unusual for the period, brought their children with them on two trips to Europe during the 1950's. Bernice's passion for everything French led her and Ben to spend increasing amounts of time in Paris. They enjoyed collecting art nouveau and art deco glass, sculpture, paintings and furniture for their apartments on the Left Bank. After Ben passed away in 1993, Bernice remained fiercely independent, splitting her time between Los Angeles and Paris. She made her last unaccompanied trip to Paris at 95. Bernice was an ardent linguist with a lively intellect and a great sense of style. Bernice is survived by daughter Carol and her husband Joseph Sullivan; son Arnold and his wife Donna Pescow. She is also survived by three grandchildren: Jack Zelonka, Jonathan Sigman, his wife Kristen Gunning, Elena Sigman and four great-grandchildren.