Bruce Garten, 56, of Powersville, Missouri, passed away at Mercy Medical Center in Des Moines, Iowa, on Tuesday, January 21, 2020, after suffering a stroke the previous week.
Bruce Alan Garten was born in Unionville, Missouri, on October 20, 1963, the son of Howard and Anna Rochelle (Stark) Garten. He was reared in Putnam County and attended West Putnam school before graduating from Putnam County High school in 1982. He married Barbara Steele and they had three children: Jennifer, Jeffrey and Brandi. Bruce worked on various Putnam County farms and then began a life-long career as a truck driver. He drove for Atlantic Carriers while living in Unionville and then moved to Olathe, Kansas, where he drove for S & H Transportation. After living in Arizona for a year, Bruce moved back to Kansas City and then to Putnam County in 2010 where he drove a truck for John and Billie Ryals, Mullenix Trucking and Smithfield. He also helped raise beef cattle on the family farm.
Bruce enjoyed deer hunting and riding 4-wheelers. He loved to go to the creek with the grandchildren and hunt for unique rocks. He rode motorcycles in his younger years. Bruce especially liked his dogs and his cattle. His greatest love was reserved for his family.
Bruce is survived by his three children: Jennifer (Josh) Lansdale of Blue Springs, Missouri; Jeff (fiancé Diana Guethle) Garten of Unionville, Missouri; and Brandi (fiancé Joe Havens) Garten of Roebling, New Jersey. His grandchildren are Frankie, Ayden, and Brinkley Lansdale and Owen, Scarlett, and Mason Havens. Bruce is also survived by his mother, Rochelle Garten of Powersville, Missouri, his brother, Randy (Lorri Fournier) of Sebastian, Florida, and his sister LuAnne (Marc) Hill of Lee’s Summit, Missouri.
Bruce was preceded in death by his father, Howard Garten, and grandparents Hubert and Opal Stark.
Memorial services for Bruce Garten will be at Playle and Collins Family Funeral Home in Unionville at 6:00 pm on Thursday, January 30, 2020, with a visitation beginning at 5:00 pm. A gathering of Bruce’s friends and family will take place at the 4-H building in Unionville at 7:00 pm the same evening as the service. Inurnment will take place at the Powersville Cemetery at a later date.
The family suggests that donations be given to The American Stroke Foundation and may be entrusted with Playle and Collins Family Funeral Home, 709 S. 27th St., Unionville, MO 63565.