Bruce Robert Lewis

April 22, 2020

Bruce Robert Lewis

Service Details

Bruce Robert Lewis, 72, was born April 12, 1948. He passed away April 22, 2020 after a brief illness.

Brucey, as he was affectionately called by many - including all of his nurses, was born in Jersey City, NJ. He was a lifelong resident of New Jersey but became an Iowa transplant 12 years ago. But, he made sure everyone knew of his proud New Jersey roots. According to Bruce, strawberries, corn, the weather, and pretty much everything was better in Jersey.

It was a well-known fact to all that he came from a family of 7 New Jersey boys and no girls. Bruce married in 1968 and from this union a daughter, Stacey, was born. Bruce was drafted into the Army in the latter part of 1968. He served in the Army as a Specialist E5 and was stationed in Korea during the Vietnam Conflict. After being honorably discharged from the Army he worked for the New Jersey Railroad. During this time, he was involved in a life altering car accident. His stubbornness and tenacity saw him through several months of rehabilitation and surgeries that followed. He worked several years in the insurance industry after the accident.

Bruce had a huge variety of interests over the years. His love of photography with a darkroom produced many a picture that his daughter now cherishes as an adult. His love of music started at a young age. Taking lessons as a child he became a very talented keyboard player resulting in many stints in local bands. One of these stints included playing back up keyboards in the Danny Thomas Band for Danny Thomas (the founder of the St. Jude Children’s Hospital). This chance life encounter resulted in Bruce having a lifelong devotion to St. Jude - The Patron Saint of Hopeless Causes. In later years he found a love of gardening and became very accomplished at growing vegetables. His green thumb grew the biggest strawberries around.

Bruce will always be known for his love of God, chess, lotto tickets, slot machines, extra spicy Bloody Mary’s, Irish coffee’s and we can’t forget his band, The Blood Sweat and Tears. His family and faith were the most important things in his life. Known for his easygoing nature, wit, and stubbornness, he will be missed by many. Left to especially miss him is his daughter, Stacey.

To quote one of Bruce’s favorite songs, “The song has ended but the melody lingers on.” Bruce most definitely marched to the beat of his own drum.

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