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It is with great regret and
sorrow that we must inform you of the death of our classmate, Bruce Holmberg, on
January 26, 2009 at the National Naval Medical Center, Bethesda, MD, after a
long and courageous battle with multiple myeloma. Bruce is survived by his
wife, Joan, their daughters, Anne Lauritzen and Leigh Rand, and four
grandchildren.
A graveside service
will be held at 1000 hrs on Friday, 6 February 2009 at the West Point Cemetery.
A luncheon will follow at the Thayer Hotel. Please let
Ed
Brown know as soon as possible if you will be going to the graveside
service and the number going to the luncheon.
Memorial contributions may be made to the
Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation,
383 Main Avenue, 5th Floor,
Norwalk,
CT
06851.
Condolences may be sent to
the family at 1351 Sweet Pea Path, Crownsville, MD 21032-2020.
Well done, Bruce. Be thou
at peace.
Remembrances:
Today I received
the sad news that Bruce Holmberg has lost his long and arduous battle with
cancer. He will be missed by his Family, Classmates, close friends, and
those of us he has been working with while volunteering his time and energy
to our Wounded Warrior Mentor Program. A special thanks to Bruce for
everything he has done for our Wounded Warriors - "Well done; Be thou at
peace".
Dick
Buckner '61
Bruce was a real warrior, a
captivating guy, full of energy and a lust for life. I didn't know him for a
long time but came to respect him and admire his courage under unbelievable
set-backs in his fight to beat his disease. I remember him wanting to have both
of his hips replaced at the same time even though he was taking heavy
medications for melanoma. He said he wanted to get back on the ski slopes. I
know I will miss him and think that we have lost a gifted leader and friend.
John Herren '58
Bruce was a special man – an
inspiration to those of us who knew him well. He cared immensely about
everything he did. He fought through pain, sickness, and setbacks like no one I
have known, all with a determined, positive attitude. Our friendship went back
to Beast Barracks days when we met during in “Corps squad screening” for
football. We then spent four years together in adjacent companies, often in the
same academic sections. He was an athlete, scholar, and friend. We’ve lost a
great member of our team.
Cy Shearer '61
Wounded Warrior Mentors,
It is with sadness that I
have to notify all of you that Bruce Holmberg passed away on Jan 26 at Bethesda
Naval a fight of several years with multiple-myeloma. Several of you already
have received word on Bruce's passing but the purpose of the message is to
insure that everyone gets informed.
Bruce came into our
program three years ago when his Class of 61 joined our mentoring program. I
cannot add enough thanks or praise for the many creative efforts and
contributions Bruce added to our program during the next two years before he
had to limit his efforts due to his sickness. Bruce was a unique individual, All
Army leader, avid skier, cyclist and a major 'hands on" worker/leader who made
major contributions to our Program. Since I did not know Bruce before he joined
our program, I was fortunate to observe and learn first hand his talents during
the next two years. On the Army piece, I was fascinated by the his army
career and how he had served in every division in the Army, several in combat..
It turns out he was a Tac at West Point as well. Bruce was an operations officer
type who really jump started the growth of our organization from the small 58
nucleus to what it is today. Our program was the direct beneficiary of
his people, organizational and technical skills learned during his many years as
an Officer in the Army and in a following successful civilian life. His work
with the WW Transition Brigade, the program recruiting effort and his his
mentoring efforts with several severely injured Wounded Warriors were sorely
missed when he had to pull back from the program. We missed him then and his
passing is a major loss to our program.
It is my understanding
that there will be a memorial service held in the near future and that he will
be interred at West Point. We will keep you informed as information on the
services becomes known.
To Bruce's family and his
wife Joanne we offer our deepest sympathy. We can celebrate his life and have
comfort that he is in a better place.
Lee Miller '58
It was
painfully inspirational to watch Bruce Holmberg courageously refuse to stop
trying to help others. We all saw him struggle to maintain focus and block
out his own suffering so that he could help ease the suffering of our
wounded veterans. At times when most people would just sit down and feel
cheated, Bruce invested the last strength he could muster, caring about everyone
but himself. He is truly a hero.
Bruce and his
family are in my prayers.
Heather Bernard
I can only
second all of your comments. Bruce was one teriffic guy. Just as one example,
who else, with cancer and severe pain in his legs, could lead a motorcycle
escort of two busloads of Walter Reed Wounded Warriors into Gettysburg, as he
did on Memorial Day a year ago. We will dearly miss him. May he rest in peace.
Hank Kenny
'61
Obituaries:
Assembly/Taps Memorial Article:
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