| Notes |
- Fred L. (Papa Fred) Bruening
December 3, 1930 - July 9, 2022
Fred Leonard “Papa Fred” Bruening, longtime area resident, passed away on Saturday, July 9, 2022 after a brief illness, he was 91. He was born in Reid City, Pennsylvania on December 3, 1930, a son of the late Fredrick Luther and Viola Grace (Leonard) Bruening. He attended school in Shanksville, Pennsylvania and eventually moved to Niagara Falls.
Fred was a unique and wonderful personality who would electrify and bring life to any place that he would go. His sense of humor and the way he looked at life would leave everyone in a better mood than they were before his visit. He was always willing to help anybody with any project or problem. He had enormous amounts of energy and was always doing something to keep himself occupied up until his last days when he was still operating his bulldozer on his farm.
He would take night classes but would become bored so he taught himself anything that he found interesting. He was a skilled sheet metal fabricator, carpenter, stone mason, welder, electrician, stationary engineer and boilerman and was an expert in superheated steam generation and instrumentation.
Fred would use his ingenuity and imagination to improvise anything that he needed that would make a project easier or the process better. He never actually saw a problem, only a solution and could create a tool, materials or anything needed to complete any project. Nothing was ever wasted and he would regularly use old wire coat hangers as welding rods to fabricate or repair steel.
“Pops” had a genuine interest in the people that he met and would remember conversations and stories for years, often continuing a conversation months or years later.
Fred is survived by his loving wife Diane (Boduch) Saunders Bruening; his son Mark Bruening (Susan) of Pennsylvania; a stepson, Michael (Sabrina) Saunders of Meaford, Ontario; his son in law, David Coull; grandchildren, Hannah and Ian Saunders; Mark, Jr; Blaine; Daniel; Cody and Casey; Special friend, Mark Johannesen of West Seneca.
He was predeceased by a daughter, Barbara Coull and siblings, Curtis and Ronald.
Private services will be held at the convenience of the family. A celebration of life will be held at a later date. If desired, memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude’s Children's Hospital; Flight 93 Memorial Fund or Niagara Hospice, Inc.
|
1930 - 2022 (91 years)