Bruce Lindgren

1940 - 2026

Bruce Lindgren

October 14, 1940 - January 27, 2026

Educator. Man of Science and Instigator of Deep Conversation. Conservationist. Writer. Photographer. Tinkerer in all things mechanical, technological, and philosophical. Bruce Franklin Lindgren passed from this life just as he lived it – testing the promise and potential of biology and technology – with a chuckle over an amusing thought right up to the end.

Born in Cheyenne, Wyoming to Obed and Verona (Peterson) Lindgren, Bruce grew up in Richfield, MN and lived most of his life in the Twin Cities, with an extended and meaningful retirement era on the South Shore of Lake Superior.

His youthful years, which he often recalled with a twinkle in his eye and head-shaking incredulity, were spent testing limits in various outdoor pursuits – camping with the boy scouts, crafting "better" bindings for downhill skis, or attempting new waterskiing tricks at the family's Lake Andrew cabin. His lifetime of service began as an offshoot of those hair-raising pursuits, as he served in the National Ski Patrol System and as director of Buck Hill's ski patrol in the 1960s and early 1970s.

At the core of his service to others, however, Bruce was a teacher and collaborator in educational innovation. After attaining his master's degree from Mankato State University, he was one of the founding members of the Normandale Community College biology faculty in 1969. There he and his colleagues pioneered an innovative educational approach to laboratory courses using self-directed study and the creation of Normandale's Biology Learning Center. Throughout his years of service to the college and deep into his retirement years, he wrote, spoke, and collaborated on his philosophy of education ecology and his passion to re-imagine a more effective and sustainable education system in America. Never content to call himself "retired," Bruce spent his "refocused" years serving communities in Bayfield County along the south shore of Lake Superior as a town chair, an education and economic development consultant, and a member of the Lake Superior Binational Forum. Some of his most cherished photography, a lifelong passion, was produced during these years on the landscape he loved more than any other.

Bruce is survived by his wife of 46 years, Patricia Riley Nelson Lindgren; children, Brent (Erin) Lindgren and Erika (Patrick) Rivers; bonus children Michael (Cathy) Nelson, Mark (Shannon) Nelson, and Jennifer (Rob) Schierman; grandchildren, Hunter (Lizzy) Schierman, Sawyer (Sara) Schierman, Wyatt and Kiera Rivers, and Riley Gillespie; and great-granddaughter, Elowyn Schierman. He is also survived by his two brothers, David (Joyce) Lindgren and Steven (Kathy) Lindgren and sister-in-law Linda Rahne, as well as many cousins, nieces, nephews, and members of his extended "Lindgrens Online" family across the nation.

In lieu of memorials, Bruce would certainly prefer that you pour yourself a nice, slow-sipping cocktail and tell stories about the good times (his would likely be a brandy old fashioned, for which he had perfected the optimal equation of bitters and dissolved sugars). However, if your heart is set on a memorial, a gift to the Normandale Community College Foundation would be preferred. A private family gathering to celebrate his life will be held at a later date.