Bruce R. Bartter

Bruce R. Bartter, of Bainbridge Ohio, died peacefully on November 22, 2024 with family by his side. He was 85. Married to the late Sandy Cottingham Bartter for 42 years. Married to Becky Ross Bartter for 17 years who pre-deceased him in 2023. He is survived by daughter Amy Bartter and grandchildren Audrey and Elliott of Lyndhurst, Ohio; and son John Bartter (Lola Velazquez) and grandchildren Ines and Henry of London, England. Also survived by Becky's daughter Brooke Thompson of Sarasota, Florida. No funeral services were held per Bruce's wishes. Memorial gifts may be made to the Geauga County Library Foundation. Please mention the gift is in memory of Bruce Bartter, and the funds will be used to purchase an outdoor bench in memory of Bruce.
Bruce was the first-born child of Ivan and Norma Bartter. Born in Duluth, Minnesota, the Bartter family moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan and finally settled in Elm Grove, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee. The family grew to five with the births of sisters Mary Beth and Connie. Bruce attended Wauwatosa High School and stayed in touch with his treasured best friends from high school right up until the end of his life. Bruce went on to attend Michigan Tech University, and graduated in 1961 with his B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering. A proud member of engineering fraternity Theta Tau, Bruce served as Treasurer of the campus group. While in college, Bruce began dating Sandy Cottingham, one of his sister Mary Beth's best friends. They married in 1961 in Elm Grove, shortly after Bruce graduated. While Bruce's dad hoped Bruce would join the family welding business, Bruce instead chose to work for Caterpillar Tractor Company in their Service Engineering division. Bruce and Sandy moved to Peoria, Illinois where Sandy finished her college degree. Daughter Amy and son John completed the family. In 1974, Caterpillar offered Bruce the chance to work in Tokyo, Japan, and the family embarked on a four-year adventure overseas. Returning to Peoria in 1978, the family moved again in 1981 to Chagrin Falls, Ohio while Bruce worked for Caterpillar in Mentor, Ohio. Bruce retired in 1999 after a successful and fulfilling 38-year career with Caterpillar Tractor Company.
With a mutual love for travel, Bruce and Sandy enjoyed trips to various Asian countries while living in Tokyo, multiple trips to London to visit son John, European river cruises, and winter breaks to Siesta Key and Sanibel Island, Florida. Bruce and Sandy hosted an annual 4th of July party for their friends, and Bruce reveled in setting up a challenging course of lawn croquet. After Sandy's untimely death in 2004, Bruce married longtime friend Becky Henderson in 2006. Bruce and Becky took traveling to a new level, visiting countries all over the world. They also began wintering in Venice, Florida. Bruce and Becky set a goal of going to a winery in each of the 50 states, and accomplished that goal in Hawaii on their 10th wedding anniversary.
Bruce was a doting grandfather to his four grandchildren. He had thoughtful "lessons" he imparted through games. He loved planning scavenger hunts and giving clues in rhyme. He loved to wrap gifts in tricky and unexpected ways. He taught his grandchildren how to fish, how to identify birds at the bird feeder, encouraged swimming, and instilled an overall appreciation for nature. He was generous with his time, and loved being able to give unexpected gifts at birthdays and Christmas. For Bruce's 80th birthday, Bruce and Becky treated the grandkids and their parents to a Disney Cruise vacation and created family memories for a lifetime.
Bruce was an avid car enthusiast. He almost always had a convertible in his life beginning with an Austin-Healy Sprite, ending with a Mini Cooper, and a Fiat, '65 Ford Mustang, Mazda Miata, and an Audi TT in-between. In addition to the Ohio Driving Test at age 16, Amy and John had to pass Bruce's driving test which included changing a tire and changing the oil. He never missed his kids' sporting events and school events. He loved sailing and had a little Sunfish boat he would sail on one of the Chagrin Lakes. He enjoyed canoeing, fishing, and camping. Every house he lived in had a "shop" in the basement with electric saws, every kind of screw or nail organized in baby food jars, and random sizes of plywood pieces. Before bringing our dachshund puppy Gretel home, Bruce wrote up a list of House Rules for the dog which all of us had to sign. Much to his chagrin, most rules were broken in the first week such as letting the dog upstairs and feeding her from the table. Bruce always had multiple crossword puzzles going at a time. When vacationing with friends, he loved to create puzzles, riddles, and fun facts to share with the group. He enjoyed reading the Wall Street Journal. He was a Master Gardener. Bruce loved to sprinkle random Japanese words into conversations. He was an avid learner, enjoyed meal planning and wine pairing, and enjoyed cooking "sous vide" for family and friends. The "gadget guy" in Bruce loved the latest and greatest in technology. Costco was a shopping trip he enjoyed. He regularly attended the long-running annual Bartter family reunion, which he remembered attending as a child, and took part in the 100th annual reunion a few years ago.
Bruce was blessed to have a devoted group of friends, neighbors, and extended family who enriched his life greatly. Whether it was dinner parties, traveling together, playing bridge, Meals on Wheels community service, boating on the lake, or his weekly breakfast groups – Bruce was grateful for these treasured friendships. He was incredibly humbled by the outpouring of love and support shown to him as his health declined. That generosity of spirit was extended to Amy and John who are equally grateful for the kindness and support shown to them by Bruce's friends and neighbors. Bruce was thrilled to reach the milestone of turning 85 in October, and happily celebrated the occasion with family and friend gatherings.
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