CNBNews

The statement below is by Camden County Commissioner Jeffrey Nash regarding the passing of former Camden County Commissioner and Cherry Hill Township Mayor Bernie Platt.

Bernie Platt

(image courtesy of The Jewish Voice)

“The Board of Commissioners is devastated to learn that Bernie Platt has passed away at the age of 90.

Bernie was one of the most compassionate human beings I have ever known and, as a community, we were in a much better place with him than without him. As I look back on the more than three decades that I have known Bernie, I can only think of one word to describe him, he was an absolute mensch. Whether you saw him at the Wawa on Springdale Road buying coffee for the Department of Public Works employees or later at night at town hall presiding over a town council meeting; he loved public service and he was committed to everyone that served the community, especially first responders.

Bernie Platt’s legacy in Camden County and Cherry Hill Township was rooted in service to the residents and positive change for his community. He ran spirited campaigns for public offices starting the mid-1970s all while continuing to tend to his day job of comforting the grieving as they came to Platt Memorial Chapels on Coffins Corner in Cherry Hill to make arrangements for a deceased loved one. Bernie’s time in elected office, especially his most recent terms, gave us the Cherry Hill we see and know today, with a redeveloped Garden State Race Track, a renaissance for the Cherry Hill Mall and a billion dollar retail corridor along Haddonfield Road. Bernie oversaw a change in the township from an entertainment capital to a retail and restaurant destination and was overwhelmingly successful.

That said, Bernie will also be remembered for being environmentally conscious before it was in vogue. He made sustainability, carbon footprint and climate change conventional phrases in Cherry Hill and walked the walked when it came to enacting policies that supported those words. From open space preservation to hybrid vehicles and solar panels, Bernie believed in getting township operations to a place where they would be completely carbon neutral one day. This all culminated in the presentation of a state Department Environmental Protection Environmental Award for his efforts in 2008.

His legacy is vast and long, both governmentally and throughout the private sector. He made contributions to so many organizations and served on so many boards within the Jewish Community and was a great supporter and fundraiser of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. There’s so much more that could be said about Bernie, he loved his family, he loved his kids and he loved his community.   

The news of Bernie’s passing comes as an incredible shock to all of us here in Camden County. We lost a remarkable man who spent his life dedicated to improving and enhancing the lives of everyone in the region and his absence will surely be felt. The Board of Commissioners extends our deepest condolences to all of Bernie’s loved ones during this incredibly difficult time.”