BRUCE EDWARD RENNIE

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BRUCE EDWARD RENNIE October 18, 1942 - March 19, 2011 Peacefully, after a lengthy illness, Bruce passed away at home. Bruce was born in Halifax to his parents Gordon and Lina Rennie who passed away several years ago. Bruce was predeceased by his father-in-law Leo Grandmont, his brother Doug Rennie and his granddaughter Felisha Rennie. Bruce is survived by his loving wife of 44 years, Diane, his daughter Tracy, his son-in-law Blair Farmer and grandson Jonathon. He is also survived by his mother-in-law Mary Grandmont, brothers-in-law George (Gayle) Grandmont, Gerald (Lori) Grandmont, Phillip (Lori) Grandmont, sisters-in-law Janet (William) Kennedy, Cathy (Mike) Macdonald, brothers Leslie (Patti) Rennie, Ken (Loretta) Rennie, Harold Rennie, his sisters Earla (Harry) Sentener, Fayrene (Manny) Slauwhite and friend Eric Carr (daughter Kaitlynn) plus many nieces and nephews. Bruce and his family lived in both Halifax and Martin's Point. Growing up on the east coast Bruce loved to go trapping lobsters, crabbing, digging big clams, picking mussels and conchs. His first job in Halifax was a telegraph messenger for Canadian National, delivering messages to ships and the railway station by bicycle. At the age of 17 Bruce came west with his brother Doug in 1959 to look for employment. He did a variety of different jobs and then in 1965 he took a job with Bulloch's, which is now known as I.C.E. Manufacturing. He worked there for 33 years and retired in 1998. Bruce met Diane Grandmont in Winnipeg where they both lived in the same apartment block. It was love at first sight and they married on December 27, 1966 at Christ The King Roman Catholic Church in Stonewall. In 1968 the family moved to Argyle and in 1975 they built their new home. They had a wonderful marriage. When Tracy was born in 1967 Bruce was awarded the second love of his life. Tracy got married to Blair in 1996 and then in 1998 along came Jon. At that point, Bruce got a new lease on life. Bruce doted over Jonathan and was always there for babysitting, soccer and hockey games. With Jonathon, his Grandpa was always there with a tooney, whether he won or lost. Bruce met Eric Carr in 1980 when he started working with him at Bulloch's. A never-ending friendship and strong bond developed that lasted forever. Bruce had many passions and hobbies in his life. He enjoyed fishing, bird watching, loved going camping in the travel trailer and traveling to many places in Canada and the United States. Bruce loved to tinker with mechanical equipment, make gadgets and he loved to swim in his backyard pool. Bruce could fine tune just about anything and make it into a better product than the manufacturer ever intended. He just finished a walking stick with a brass handle, which is beautiful. He was a perfectionist in many ways. Bruce loved the outdoors and always looked for excuses to be out working in the garden and doing yard work. Bruce was always pimping his ride with his Ford truck. Most of all Bruce loved sports including hockey and football. He loved telling funny stories and making people laugh. He will be missed by his loving family. The funeral will be held at the Christ The King Roman Catholic Church at 315 Second St. East in Stonewall at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, March 25. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Manitoba Diabetes Association or the Heart and Stroke Foundation. MacKenzie Funeral Home, Stonewall in care of arrangements.

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Mar 23, 2011