Four women who were friends with Bernadette Vander Meer said Thursday they were suspicious of her hubby aft she fell to her decease during a hike with her spouse astatine Zion National Park successful 2006.
Three of the women, Kristina Riccio, Kari Krute and Dollie Wong, worked arsenic cocktail waitresses with Bernadette astatine New York-New York. A fourth, Kathy Page, was a longtime mentor and confidant of Vander Meer’s.
Each said the thought that their friend, an experienced and avid hiker, could gaffe and autumn from the heights of Angels Landing successful Zion portion hiking with her husband, David Vander Meer, made small sense.
“The communicative I was told was they were going to instrumentality a picture, she was lasting adjacent the borderline and helium said, ‘Just bent connected a second, fto maine get the camera ready,’ and she slipped backward,” Page said. “That doesn’t beryllium good with me. I don’t spot her doing that.”
Wong felt the aforesaid way.
“I didn’t adjacent cognize her husband, but immediately, I was like, ‘He did it,’” she said.
This week, David Vander Meer — who collected much than $567,000 successful beingness security aft his woman died — was arrested and accused of sidesplitting her. He was facing extradition to Utah erstwhile a justice announced astatine a Thursday proceeding that helium had died.
Devoted wife
Despite their suspicion of David Vander Meer, Bernadette Vander Meer’s friends said she was devoted to the marriage. Co-workers recalled her handing her net implicit to him and allowing him to marque decisions for her.
All 4 retained fond memories of “Bernie,” arsenic immoderate friends called her. Twenty years aft her death, they inactive talk of her bully character, kindness and fantastic spirit.
“Someone special,” Page said. “She had that ‘it’ factor. Someone who stands retired supra everybody else.”
Bernadette Vander Meer was attending Meadows Christian Fellowship successful Las Vegas successful her aboriginal teens erstwhile she met Page, who was a subordinate of the religion and a younker leader. The 2 deed it disconnected and bonded astir instantly.
“Talented,” Page said. “A singer. She danced. Just a beauteous tone wrong and out.”
Bernadette Vander Meer was committed to her faith, oregon arsenic Page enactment it, “God First.” She besides had large aspirations. She wanted to effort retired for American Idol. Then, she met David Vander Meer portion appearing successful a play.
The 2 joined erstwhile Bernadette was 18. Page remembers questioning whether that was a omniscient decision.
“I asked her, ‘Why are you doing this erstwhile you are truthful young?’” Page recalled. “She said, ‘I americium mature for my age.’”
‘Wasn’t a mean streak successful her’
Bernadette Vander Meer was besides a hard worker.
As a teen, her parent said, she concisely worked arsenic a nanny successful Washington, D.C., for the household of erstwhile U.S. Sen. John Ensign of Nevada.
For a time, she besides portrayed the quality Betty Boop portion moving astatine the MGM Grand taxable park. A Las Vegas Review-Journal photograph from 1997 shows Bernadette Vander Meer greeting a kid who had won a poster contention astatine the hotel.
Riccio said Bernadette Vander Meer gave her books astir God.
“She would archer me, ‘I commune for you each day,’ due to the fact that I’m beauteous overmuch atheist,” Riccio said.
Riccio didn’t mind.
“I don’t deliberation she was pushing it connected me,” she said. “I truly deliberation she believed possibly if she prayed for me, I would beryllium saved oregon something.”
Although she was a cocktail waitress, Riccio and different friends did not callback Bernadette drinking. She would bid h2o oregon soda if they went retired together.
Wong said Bernadette was outdoorsy and would speech astir hiking. She was amusive and vivacious. She spoke often astir her husband.
At 1 point, their institution gave employees escaped tickets to spot Zumanity, a risqué show. Despite being religious, Bernadette went with Wong and they laughed done the performance.
“I conscionable felt similar she was truthful blessed to beryllium out, due to the fact that I don’t deliberation that she ever truly went out,” Wong said.
Wong remembers that Bernadette said she would manus implicit her tips to her husband, who gave her an allowance. She trusted her husband, Wong said.
‘I deliberation he’s having an affair’
Riccio ne'er met her friend’s husband, but thought helium seemed controlling. Still, she said Bernadette didn’t look unhappy astir her hubby making decisions and taking her earnings.
Krute said Vander Meer was kind, axenic and a small naive. She loved to sing.
“There wasn’t a mean streak successful her,” Krute said.
She was besides dedicated to her religion and obedient to her husband.
“Bernadette would not walk $6 connected a brace of pantyhose without asking David,” Krute said. “She handed each dollar implicit to that man.”
Page had a concerning luncheon gathering with her adjacent person astir a period earlier her death.
“At that luncheon she said, ‘I deliberation he’s having an affair,’” Page recalled. “She said it and I was like, ‘What, are you sure?’ She was like, ‘I spot the signs. He keeps things to himself but I inactive drawback things.’”
Page thought her person was embarrassed by the situation. It was the past clip the 2 saw each other.
“At the time, nary of america knew that she was having issues with him,” Krute said. “She didn’t truly stock things similar that astatine enactment with the girls.”
Krute remembers gathering David Vander Meer for the archetypal clip astatine his wife’s funeral. He was teary-eyed, she said. She didn’t shingle his manus due to the fact that adjacent then, she believed helium had pushed his wife.
She said she knew the mates had beingness security due to the fact that Bernadette brought the paperwork successful to enactment astatine 1 point, seemingly confused, and asked coworkers astir it.
She said she and different co-workers aboriginal recounted that incidental to an security institution typical who met with them.
“We conscionable didn’t recognize wherefore she needed truthful overmuch insurance,” Krute said. “It was conscionable her and David and they some had an income.”
Reactions to his decease were mixed from her erstwhile co-workers.
Wong said she thinks David Vander Meer deserves to beryllium dead, but that the “easy death” helium had was undeserved.
“At the extremity of the day, there’s nary justice, none, but it’s amended than … him not being caught,” she said.
Though Krute said, “Justice close there,” aft proceeding quality successful tribunal of David Vander Meer’s death, she said aboriginal that she was disappointed.
“It’s justness that he’s dead, but helium truly should person been dragged done the mud,” she said. “He had a abrogation for the past 20 years and 3 much wives.”
Contact Glenn Puit astatine gpuit@reviewjournal.com. Contact Noble Brigham nbrigham@reviewjournal.com.
English (US)·