Vicki Bergeron Borges, widow of the esteemed jazz singer Jimmy Borges, died peacefully in her sleep on Nov. 10. She was 68.
Her passing was confirmed by Rick Ornellas, her companion and trusty Care-Angel, who has been her supportive partner and caregiver since July 2023, amid her battle with cancer.
During her final moments, Ornellas played Borges’ music, which soothed and comforted her, and she even appeared to be lip-synching to the songs till her final breath.
Vicki was born in Biloxi, Mississippi on Oct. 28, 1956.
The family relocated to San Francisco when she was a toddler, and she attended Pleasanton Elementary School, and graduated from Amador Valley High School, both in Pleasanton. California.
When she was 24 years old, she travelled with her girlfriend to Hawaii — and she never left.
At 26, she met her future soul mate, “Gorgeous Borges” (Jimmy) at Trappers, a “happening” place at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Waikiki. And she quickly became a regular patron at the night spot, for obvious reasons.
At 31, she and Jimmy got married in Las Vegas and were together for 34 years until his passing on May 30, 2016, two days shy of his 81st birthday on June 1.
Vicki had a prominent career, as an executive assistant to the CEO of the Outrigger Hotels in Waikiki, an executive assistant to Mayor Jeremy Harris, and a scheduler for Gov. Neil Abercrombie.
Vicki and Ricky became a couple four and a half years ago. “Vicki is a strong wahine, sweet and pretty, and we had our first date when I invited Jack and Cha Thompson to Miro Kaimuki for dinner and Cha asked if she could bring a friend and that friend was Vicki Borges. For the record, I met Jimmy before Vicki when he was playing at Keone’s Lounge on Lewers Street in Waikiki.”
Vicki and Ricky were compatible for the most part, enjoying fine, sit-down dinners, and “she loved a chilled vodka martini dirty, her drink of choice. And her champagne of choice was the Veuve Clicquot yellow label, the same choice of Robert Cazimero,” said Ricky.
Cha Thompson suspected that Vicki’s cancer and the related pain affected her in recent weeks. “When she last called me, she wasn’t her usual positive self,” said Cha. “She always used to say, ‘I’m going to lick this’ (her cancer), but she seemed depressed. She was succumbing to the inevitable.”
Navian Hawaii Hospice provided support, and Oahu Cemetery is the arranging mortuary.
Vicki is survived by her attack parakeets, Pupu, Lan Lan and Bun Bun, plus her aforementioned Care-Angel Ricky.
She is also survived by two brothers, Mark Bergeron (and wife Irma), of Martinez, Calif., and Farley Bergeron (and wife Kim), of Belton, Missouri.
Per her choice, there will be no service, but her ashes will be scattered in the ocean fronting the Elks Club in Waikiki, reuniting her with hubby Jimmy, whose remains also were scattered in the same location…
And that’s Show Biz…