Bruce fished the Chippewa Flowage for 70 years, beginning in 1931 with his father. He began his career as a guide on those same famous waters in 1946 out of Herman’s Landing, and continued showing anglers the muskies, walleyes and panfish of the Big Chip as their primary guide through 1993. He wasn’t just a guide, he was the personification of the very word. Bruce was born in Minneapolis and graduated from Elmwood high school in Wisconsin in 1936. He served in the Navy from 1940 to 1946 as a Chief Yeoman on the ship, the Alcor. After the war, he received his B.A. from UW-Eau Claire in 1949 and his M.A. from UW-Superior in 1959. Prior to coming to Rice Lake he was a teacher at Gilman and Northwestern-Maple high schools. From 1957 to 1980 Bruce was a guidance counselor at Rice Lake High School and that career served as a perfect complement to guiding fisherman all summer long and during weekends in the fall. He also designed and distributed the Bon-Net, a very popular musky lure in the 50’s and 60’s. Bruce became a legendary guide and was recognized as such by his induction into the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame in April of 2002. Bruce and his wife Betty had six children. In January of 2003 he passed away at the age of 84.