JENS BRUUN

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JENS BRUUN Mr. Jens Bruun, beloved husband of the late Ella Bruun, passed away at the Brandon Regional Health Centre on Tuesday, March 10, 2009 at the age of 78. He will be deeply missed by his children Anders (Lorraine), Ingse (Abdul), Birthe, Kari (Tony) and Albert (Terry). He will also be missed by his sisters Nanna and Inger Margrethe, brothers Vagn, Sten Folke and Asger, numerous cousins, nieces and nephews, and his many friends. Jens was born on August 1, 1930 at Hundborg, Denmark, the first son of Ingeborg L. and Anders Y. Bruun, both now deceased. He had many fond memories of his early childhood years and enjoyed sharing those stories with family and friends. He had particularly vivid memories of the occupation of Denmark by Germany from April 9, 1940 to May 5, 1945, an event which he remembered his father warning about several years prior to the commencement of hostilities. While Denmark was largely spared the horrors of the Second World War, he became acutely aware of the dangers of the misuse of authority in any form and shared his lessons from that experience, often by metaphor, with family and friends. At 18, he and two friends took a long trip through Norway by bicycle and returned from that to start work managing one of several farms owned by his father. This farm was located a few short kilometres from the one on which the soon to be love of his life, and future wife, Ella Hojgaard lived. The next few years were a flurry of activity with courtship, marriage and starting a family being his top priorities. He also managed to do his compulsory military service at a base not too far from Ella. When he was 27, he and Ella decided to move to Canada. The early years were difficult but he remembered them as being very good filled with promise and new experiences. He worked for the PFRA for several years assisting on water flow studies in the Wilson Creek area on the eastern side of Riding Mountain National Park. Part of his job required him to measure rainfall, and water levels and flows at stations throughout the watershed. He loved to take his children with him on those days so they could see nature in the raw and the abundant wildlife of the Park. His children remember those special days alone with Dad as being grand adventures. He built his first house in McCreary and this experience led him into the construction industry where he worked as a carpenter on projects ranging from The Winnipeg Art Gallery and the Limestone power dam to houses for resale. He received his Lifetime Achievement Award from the Carpenters Union in 2002. Ella passed away August 23, 2006 and he never truly recovered from that loss. He believed that his children were his greatest achievement and took tremendous pride in all of them. He was especially pleased with the arrival of his three grandchildren Farha, Kasim and Carolyn and was delighted with the arrival of great-grandchildren Sabine, Mira and Leah. Apart from his immediate family, he enjoyed the outdoors, hunting both waterfowl and big game, fishing, reading, staying on top of current events, doing home improvement projects, travel across Canada and to visit family in Denmark and socializing with friends. He was a man who was always active and engaged with life and his passing will be mourned deeply. The funeral service will be held at the Brockie Donovan Chapel, 332-8th Street, Brandon, on Friday, March 13, 2009 at 1:00 p.m. with Mr. Lawrence McInnes, Brockie Donovan Funeral Celebrant, officiating. Interment will follow at the Brandon Cemetery. Donations in memory of Jens may be made to the Brandon Regional Health Centre Foundation, 150 McTavish Ave. East, Brandon, MB, R7A 2B3. Messages of condolence may be placed at www.brockiedonovan.com Arrangements are in care of Brockie Donovan Funeral Cremation Services, Brandon, (204) 727-0694.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Mar 12, 2009