Gerald (Jerry) Emmett Bruen, Jr., 77, of Marion died January 7, 2025 peacefully at home. He was the husband of Jeanne Helen (Pietrasiak) Bruen for 44 years.
Born in Weymouth, Massachusetts, son of the late Gerald Emmett Bruen, Sr. and Jean Frances (Strout) Bruen, he grew up in Hingham and later raised his family in Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan before moving to Marion, MA with his wife in 2006.
A graduate of Worcester Academy, he received a BA from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and MBA from Bryant College in Smithfield, RI.
Jerry served as a First Lieutenant in the US Army and was deployed to Vietnam from 1969-1971, earning a Bronze Star Medal, medals for Vietnam Campaign, National Defense, Vietnam Service, plus a Combat Infantryman Badge and an Overseas Service Bar.
Jerry was formerly employed at St. Elizabeth’s, The Miriam & Bon Secours Hospitals plus Mercy and Trinity Health Systems. He retired from Plante Moran in Southfield, MI as a Partner in Healthcare.
Jerry was an accomplished rugby player for several clubs, notably the USA Eastern Rugby Union, coach of the NE Rugby Team, and many years for the Beacon Hill Rugby Football Club, where he was captain and coached multiple teams. He was inducted into the UMass Athletic Hall of Fame for rugby in 1994.
Having sailed since he was very young, he was an avid boater, leading countless trips and races on the Great Lakes, the Gulf of Maine, Buzzards Bay, and an extended trip to the Caribbean in 2008. He also enjoyed traveling, which included trips to Ireland and Norway with his boys, and most recently to Anna Maria Island, FL with his granddaughter.
In his later years, Jerry volunteered as a docent at the New Bedford Whaling Museum, which he enjoyed immensely. He especially loved giving tours to school children and international tourists. He quickly grew to appreciate the camaraderie of his fellow docents.
Survivors include his wife Jeanne; 2 sons, Patrick Bruen and his wife Courtney of Duxbury, and Kyle Bruen of Portsmouth, NH; 3 sisters, Jean Moriarty of Hull, Barbara Carmody, and Mary Carle, both of Scituate; his granddaughter, Hallie; and several nieces and nephews. He was the brother of the late Susan Eustis. He is deeply loved and will be missed.
Visiting hours for Jerry will be held on Saturday, February 1 from 11 AM – 2 PM at the Saunders-Dwyer Mattapoisett Home for Funerals, 50 County Rd. (Rt. 6), in Mattapoisett, MA. A celebration of life will follow. A burial will take place in the Spring at the Massachusetts National Cemetery in Bourne, MA.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made In Memory of Jerry to Brigham and Women’s Heart and Vascular Center. Alternatively, donations can be made to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, please direct the gift to Genitourinary Cancers > Prostate Cancer in the dropdown menu.
For directions and guestbook, visit www.saundersdwyer.com.
