Dan Bertelli, a pharmacist and former city council member whose generosity and entrepreneurial spirit helped shape the Morgan Hill that exists today, died April 25. He was 90.
Bertelli was born July 17, 1935, and grew up in the Daly City area, where he began working at a pharmacy at age 10, delivering prescriptions by bicycle. That early experience set the course for a career that would continue into his eighties.
After graduating from the University of Wyoming in the 1950s, Bertelli soon after moved to Morgan Hill, where he opened Bertelli Pharmacy on Main Avenue in the early 1960s. The pharmacy became a fixture of the community.
Over time, Bertelli expanded his holdings to include a men’s clothing store, a dress shop called “The Carousel Shop,” a fabric store, a Gold Crown Hallmark store in San Jose and, eventually, a chain of pharmacies stretching across Central California from King City to Sonora—some of which still bear his name.
He was known as much for his character as his business acumen. Former employees and customers remembered him as someone who never turned away a patient who couldn’t afford a prescription.
“He was very generous, he helped people who didn’t have money for prescriptions,” said Bertelli’s sister, Carol Villar. “I worked for him. It didn’t matter if you had money or not. If you had need for medicine, he saw that you got it.”
Beyond the pharmacy counter, Bertelli was deeply engaged in Morgan Hill’s civic life. He served on the planning commission before running successfully for city council in 1972. He served three terms and at one point held the position of mayor pro tem.
He resigned a few months before his final term expired in 1984, having moved outside city limits when he relocated to Sonora to focus on his growing chain of pharmacies.
His son, Bob Bertelli, said his father was a tireless advocate for those without a voice.
“He looked out for everybody else, often at his own expense,” Bob Bertelli said. “He always stood up for the underdog. That was just his way of living.”
Bertelli was also a standout athlete, attending the University of Wyoming on a baseball scholarship, and played football and basketball as well. John Madden, the celebrated football coach and sports commentator, was a close friend of Bertelli growing up in Daly City.
“They were best buds, they played sports together in the eighth grade,” Villar said. “After, they were friends even when John was beginning coaching. Dan went to all the games, and got season tickets to the Raiders when John coached there, and they had a lifelong friendship.”
Bertelli was also a devoted member of the Presbyterian church in Morgan Hill and remained active in both the Rotary Club and the Kiwanis Club during his years in the community.
“He was a Christian man, and he lived his religion every day,” Villar said. “He was the divinest man I’ve ever known, my brother. He went to church every Sunday and he prayed every day.”
He continued practicing pharmacy until 80 years old, finally hanging up his apron in 2015 when he sold the last of his stores. His son Bob followed him into the profession and continues to work as a community pharmacist in Marina.
After leaving Morgan Hill in 1984, Bertelli lived in Sonora and Merced before settling in Monterey, where he spent his final years.
He is survived by his wife, Charlene; his son, Robert; his two grandchildren, Erik Bertelli and Kaari Hellendoorn; and two great-grandchildren, Walter Hellendoorn and Charlie Hellendoorn. He was preceded in death by his daughter, Lisa.
A celebration of life will be held May 15 in Morgan Hill at P&V Vineyard, owned by Bertelli’s niece Vicki Kermoyan and husband Paul Kermoyan, at 10:30am. The celebration is open to the public.
