Bruce W. Temple

Bruce W. Temple, 61, a beloved relative and treasured friend, gadget geek and food fanatic, executive and philanthropist, died early Saturday morning at Lakeland Medical Center in St. Joseph, after a brief battle with an unsporting disease. A Celebration of Life Service will be held Wednesday December 10, 2008 at 10:30 at St. Bernard’s Catholic Church, 555 Delaware in Benton Harbor. Burial will follow at Calvary Cemetery. Visitation will be from 4:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Tuesday at Starks & Menchinger Family Funeral Home, 2650 Niles Rd., St. Joseph. A Prayer Service will be held Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. Those wishing to share a memory or sign the guest book online may do so at www.starks-menchinger.com An aggressive form of brain cancer took Bruce unfairly early from those who loved him, leaving too many plans unfulfilled, sights unseen and wine bottles corked. Fortunately, at least until the final hours, the illness didn’t rob them of his generous spirit or gregarious personality: His booming laugh continually filled his St. Joseph home during the final months, time he shared with the many relatives and friends who adored him. Bruce and his wife, Ann, have resided in St. Joseph for the last decade, after several years of living overseas, in China and Singapore. Since he retired four years ago, they have traveled together extensively, visiting the vineyards of Northern California and the trattorias of Italy, exploring the mountain ranges of the Pacific Northwest and the seaside bluffs of Ireland. In recent years, Bruce took up barbecuing in a serious way, spending successive days tinkering with levels of smoke, types of wood chips, temperatures and times in pursuit of the perfect ribs and brisket. He remained a dedicated chilidog connoisseur his entire life, loyal to Lafayette Coney Island, which he came to love as a child growing up in Detroit, when you could get two wieners and a Coke for $1.04. Bruce lived in the St. Joseph area on two earlier occasions, first landing on the shores of Lake Michigan to accept a job as an operations analyst at Whirlpool Corp. in 1972, after graduating from the University of Michigan with an MBA. He was a computer engineer before most people knew what a computer was, creating business software from scratch, on punch cards plugged into room-sized mainframes. He worked at Whirlpool his entire career, most recently as director with the freestanding range team. Bruce volunteered weekly for Habitat for Humanity, helping to build homes for the less fortunate. He was also, at various times, a United Way board member, SCUBA assistant instructor, adjunct faculty member at a technical college and a soccer coach and referee. He was a firm believer that personal responsibility is paramount in charity, as well as in life. He was fond of the adage: “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach him how to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” But where some rely on this as a rationale to give nothing, he saw it as the reason to do much. Bruce passed at Lakeland Regional Medical Center, the same hospital where his two sons, Doug and James, a furniture designer and journalist, respectively, were born more than three decades ago. He regularly repeated his favorite line from writer Calvin Trillin: “Your children are either the center of your life or they’re not, and the rest is commentary.” No one, least of all either of his sons, could ever say he didn’t live those words. Fatherhood was clearly one of the great joys of his life. In addition to Doug and James, he is survived by Ann, who looked after him with loving care and infinite patience during his three-month battle. He also leaves behind his younger brother, Kenn Temple; his mother and father, Jim and Marian Temple; a niece and nephew, Jeff and Sarah Temple; siblings-in-law, Kathy Temple, Pat Kupiec-Murphy, Mike Murphy and J.T. Murphy; three stepchildren, Erin, Jeff and T.J. Olszewski; a daughter-in-law, Shannon Temple; and a grandson, Cameron Bruce Michael. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to Harbor Habitat for Humanity or Berrien County Cancer Service.