Bruce M. Van Buren

Bruce M. Van Buren of Fond du Lac, passed away peacefully at home on Sunday, February 5, 2023.

Bruce was born July 7, 1941, in Fond du Lac, the son of Melvin and Alice Van Buren. He married Marilynn Schneider on September 19, 1970, in Oshkosh.

Bruce grew up on a farm in the Brandon, WI, area and it was there that his love for the outdoors and hunting and fishing was born. He passed that love on to his sons, David and Gregory and had many great memories of time spent with his sons.

Bruce graduated from Brandon High School and then enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. He served four years and was forever a Marine. Semper Fi! When he returned to Wisconsin, he began his employment in the Fond du Lac County Court System. He became Fond du Lac County Clerk of Courts in 1988 and continued in that position until his retirement in 1999.

After retiring, he was looking for new adventures and found himself at the sport shop buying downhill ski equipment. Bruce had not been on skis for 25 years, but that didn’t slow him down. That day led to his second career. After several years he became a ski instructor at Cascade Mountain and enjoyed that for 17 years. He gave over 1200 lessons, but his favorite students by far were his granddaughters, Elliot, Emma, and Reese. He loved his many trips to Colorado to ski and always looked forward to spending time with his ski buddies.

Bruce was also an avid bicycler and over the years logged thousands of miles. There were crashes along the way, but he always got back on the bike. He was always a hard worker and never hesitated to help out his family, friends or neighbors.

Bruce is survived by his wife, Marilynn of Fond du Lac, his sons, David (Sarah) of Fond du Lac and Greg (Andrea) of East Troy, and his very special granddaughters, Emma, Elliot, and Reese. He is also survived by his brothers Dale (Norma) Van Buren, Martin (Norma) Van Buren, Robert (Bonnie) Van Buren; his sister, Karen (Rick) Beek; sisters in law Vikki Van Buren, Carole Halling and June Ashford, and many wonderful nieces and nephews and friends.

Bruce was preceded in death by his parents, Melvin and Alice, his in-laws, Roman and Margaret Schneider, his sister and brother-in-law, Carol and Art Lamonska, his brother, Kendall Van Buren, and brothers-in-law, Patrick Ashford and Robert Halling.

Visitation will be held from 12:00 PM to 2:00 PM on Sunday, February 12, 2023, at Uecker-Witt Funeral Home with a memorial service at 2:00 PM. Cremation has taken place.

Memorials can be directed to the Fondy Food Pantry, 573 Rolling Meadows Dr., Fond du Lac or the Fond du Lac Humane Society, 652 Triangle Rd, Fond du Lac.

Services are in the care of Uecker-Witt Funeral Home, 524 North Park Avenue, Fond du Lac, WI, 54935. Additional information and guestbook can be found at ueckerwitt.com