From the tribute in The Age newspaper, I quote “A passionate life, full of faith, friendship, volunteering, travel and her Essendon “Bombers”. Barbara will be dearly missed by many. Forever in our Hearts.” For many years Barbara was a regular attendee to our ANZROC lunches and a valued correspondent contributing to our newsletter.Eamon Veaney emailed “Barbara Bruce had a heartwarming funeral service at St Leonard's Uniting Church at Brighton with an excellent turn out of family and friends. Barbara had planned the whole service in a meticulous manner including detailed notes on her life which formed the basis of her eulogy. We learned of her early family and school life and her long-standing association with the church including her time in the choir. She retired from a 40-year career with ES&A and ANZ in 1990 when she was PA to GM International, John Holberton. She then returned part-time for another 5 years working in International.Barbara then spent time as a volunteer with the MCG / MCC for a number of years and was an Essendon Bombers supporter for over 70 years. Their theme song was played as she departed the church.Her good friends Maria Natoli and Jill Paterson also attended the funeral. Vale Barb.”Graham Holt emailed “I had the pleasure of working with Barbara in International Division in the 1970’s. In more recent years Carole and I often caught up with her on the train home from an Essendon match. After a win the discussion was always on how good we were, however in more recent years we talked about the days in International and Barbara had a million stories to tell about her regular trips to England. Memories of Barbara always are accompanied with a smile.”Kate Freer from National Sports Museum Volunteers emailed “We recently received the very sad news that one of our retired volunteers, Barbara Bruce, died at the age of 91 on 13th April, after declining health in recent weeks.Barbara was in the inaugural group of National Sports Museum Volunteers who started in 2008 and was a regular in the Tuesday team. Barbara was an MCC Member and also volunteered in the MCC Museum for several years until she retired in 2019.In her working career, Barb worked at the ANZ Bank for many years, and was an excellent typist. Barb also volunteered at the Commonwealth Games in 2006, she was very well travelled and a keen Bombers supporter Everyone who knew Barb would agree that she was a very kind, gentle and intelligent person, and a pleasure to spend time with. “
