Judy Remembered: Great Bartender, Good Friend, Kind Person

The Sunday memorial for Judy Roemer celebrated a great bartender, great friend and great memories of times past on Key Biscayne. (Nancy Beth Jackson/Key News)

“Judith Ann Roemer, 80, of Rockell (NC), peacefully passed away on Saturday, January 4, 2020 at her residence.”

So began Judy Roemer’s obituary, stating the essentials but not the essence of a rich life lived during the halcyon days of Key Biscayne. The passing of the big-hearted bartender extraordinaire was a reminder of what island life used to be.

“Judy was at the epicenter of everything that went on on Key Biscayne,” said Stephanie Giering, a close friend, who spoke Sunday at the memorial service at the Key Biscayne Community Church.  The celebration drew a mostly older crowd, more than a few surprised to find that Judy had been a mutual friend. 

Her death came suddenly but quietly, shortly after she had moved from Florida to North Carolina to be near family. Apparently dizzy after climbing stairs, she stretched out on her bed, crossed her arms, closed her eyes and passed away, according to Christine Biggers, who organized the celebration.

When Biggers posted the news on Facebook on Jan. 4, the Key Rat Chat page exploded with memories — her gravelly voice, her perfect White Russian, her bigger-than-life personality, her Mustang convertible and the legendary 4th of July parties spilling out of her small apartment at the Williamsburg Apartments. 

“She sure was one of a kind. Great bartender, good friend and kind person,” posted Lainee Brown.

It all began at the Sand Bar, as one guest explained to Pastor Dennis Eastling before the service. The Sand Bar, the mid-century beachfront restaurant at the Silver Sands Motel, was party central with one bar downstairs in the restaurant and the Eagle’s Nest on the roof. Judy worked the Eagle’s Nest on weekend nights, folks recalled. 

Judy was already an institution when Bill Durham opened a bike shop on the Key in the early 1970s. He remembers staggering out of the bar after a night of beer drinking.

“I got on my bike to ride home and crashed twice in the parking lot. I went back in the bar and told Judy I had fallen off my bike,” he said. Not taking no for an answer, she confiscated his bike and told him to walk home.

On August 24, 1992, the Sand Bar partying stopped when Hurricane Andrew made a direct hit. The New York Times reported: “The Silver Sands Motel, an endearing landmark and watering hole, was almost totally destroyed and its future remains in doubt.”  Four days after the hurricane, Sand Bar regulars gathered there anyway. A photo shows a smiling Judy right in the middle of the party.

The following year the motel was rebuilt, but not the Sand Bar. Nothing could take its place, but Judy went on to work at other bars on the Key, including the Rusty Pelican, the Links and most recently the Key Hole. Along the way, she became a Key Biscayne legend. 

“She always had a smile on her face,” said Biggers, who met Judy after her Sand Bar days. “You could turn the worst day around just by talking to her.”