Elder M. Bruch

Elder M. Bruch, age 89, of Paola, Kansas, died on Friday, May 2, 2008, at North Point Skilled Nursing in Paola, Kansas. Elder was born on November 15, 1918, in Black Creek, Wisconsin, the son of Arnold and Hazel (Woide) Bruch. He grew up in Cudahy, Wisconsin. He served in the U.S. Army during WWII as a medic in the Army Air Corps, which took him to North Africa and Italy. Following the war, he moved to Carthage, Missouri, where he married Pauline Shults on November 4, 1945. A son, Mike, was born to this union. The couple moved to Paola, Kansas in 1948. Elder began his career with the United States Post Office in 1951, as a Railway Postal Clerk. In 1968, the family moved to Sand Springs, Oklahoma, where he worked in Tulsa as a Postal Clerk, until retiring in 1982. He was an active member of the Broadway Baptist Church in Sand Springs, Oklahoma; and an active member of the First Baptist Church in Paola, Kansas and he was a member of the American Legion. He enjoyed woodworking, fishing, gardening, and collecting coins. Elder was preceded in death by his parents; and a sister, LaRae Gebheim in 1986. He is survived by his wife, Pauline; one son, Mike Bruch and wife Geneva of Osawatomie, Kansas; two grandsons, Eli Bruch and Sam Bruch; and one nephew, Tom Gebheim of Phoenix, Arizona. Graveside services will be held at 11:30 AM on Tuesday, May 6, 2008, at Diamond Cemetery in Diamond, Missouri. The family will greet friends from 6:00-8:00 PM, Monday evening at the funeral home in Garnett.